Japanese football legend and the national team’s all-time top scorer, Kunishige Kamamoto, has passed away at the age of 81 due to pneumonia.

The Kyoto-born striker became famous for his achievement at the 1968 Olympic Games in Mexico, where he finished as the tournament’s top scorer with seven goals and led Japan to win the bronze medal.

Thanks to his stamina, agility, and physical strength, Kamamoto was called up to join the national team for the first time at the age of 19 in 1964, representing the “Samurai” at the Tokyo Olympics. He scored 75 goals in 76 international matches between 1964 and 1977, until his international retirement.

In 1967, he joined Yanmar Diesel — now known as Cerezo Osaka — in the league, scoring 202 goals in 251 matches until his retirement in 1984. During the latter years of his playing career, he also served as the club’s manager.

He had a few short stints as a coach before working with the Japan Football Association. Kamamoto also became involved in politics, becoming a member of the House of Councillors in 1995.