Prince of Twist, Kenzo Shirai: Full Bio [2023 Update]

Kenzo Shirai, aka Prince of Twist, is a famous gymnast from Japan. He is best known for his competitions in both team events and the single vault.

Furthermore, Kenzo is a part of the Japanese National Olympic team. As a result, he is ranked among the most popular gymnast and celebrities born in Japan.

In fact, Kenzo has made a name for himself in the category of the gymnast as the youngest gymnast to win the gold medal in Rio at the age of 19.

Soon after entering the international gymnastic game at the 2013 World Championship, Kenzo Shirai made a name as one of the most original gymnasts of all time.

Besides, as of now, six techniques are named after the Kenzo, which are Shirai-Nguyen, Shirai 2 & Shirai 3 floor skills. Similarly, Shirai-Kim, Shirai 2 & Shirai 3 Vault Skills.

In this article, we will give deep insight into the reason behind Kenzo’s retirement, his early life, his net worth, injuries, and other pieces of information.

But before that, let’s take a glance at some quick facts about ‘Twist Prince Kenzo Shirai.

Kenzo Shirai: Quick Facts

Kenzo Shirai: Early Life & Education

Early Life of Prince of Twist

Twist Prince Kenzo Shirai was born on August 24, 1996, in Yokohama, Japan. Similarly, his father, Masaki Shira, and his mother, Norimi Shirai, owned Tsurumi Junior Gymnastics Club.

Since both of his parents were also gymnastics coaches, he was family influenced and started training early.

Instead of playing at the daycare, Masaki and Norimi brought Shirai and his older brothers to the gym. This gym was his second home, and he started practicing gymnastics at the very young age of three.

Besides, he was influenced by his two older brothers, who were also into gymnastics. 

Moreover, his older brother Shotaro won a gold medal in artistic gymnastics (team event) at the 2014 Asian Games in Incheon, South Korea.

Ever since Kenzo was a teenager, his dream was to win the gold medal in Olympics.

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Education

However, Kenzo never attended a regular school like some elite athletes. Instead, he got his training from his parent’s training club Tsurumi Junior Gymnastics Club, during his early days. 

Furthermore, Shirai graduated from high school in March 2015; he got a chance to attend Nippon Sport Science University (NSSU).

In fact, this University is famous among elite artistic gymnastics to train and to study. Kenzo’s coach Kohei Uchimura was also a former student of the same University. 

Thus, getting admission to NSSU was indeed a turning point in Kenzo’s career.

Later, twist prince Kenzo also got his master’s degree in physical science from NSSU and became an assistant professor at the University.