Robin Kietlinski sets out to problematize the hegemonic image of the delicate Japanese woman, highlighting an overlooked area in the history of modern Japan. Previous studies of gender in the Japanese context do not explore the history of female participation in sport, and recent academic studies of women and sport tend to focus on Western countries.

Kietlinski locates the discussion of Japanese women in sport within a larger East Asian context and considers the socio-economic position and history of modern Japan. Reaching from the early 20th century to the present day, Kietlinski traces the progression of Japanese women's participation in sport from the first female school for physical education and the foundations of competitive sport through to their growing presence in the Olympics and international sport.

Robin Kietlinski is a Visiting Assistant Professor at the Department of History of Fordham University. She received her M.A. in 2004 and a Ph.D. in 2008 both in East Asian Languages and Civilizations from the University of Pennsylvania where she also won a William Penn Fellowship. Her dissertation was "Faster, Higher, Stronger: Gender and the Olympic Games in Twentieth Century Japan".