Koko’s rise to silver

She’s a geek by day and a pole dancer by night.

Ryoko Ibaraki has been a computer programmer for 10 years, but she’s also considered one of the best pole dancers in the world.

Koko, as she is commonly known, moved to New Zealand in 2002 from Osaka, Japan and lives with her family in Auckland’s Western Springs.

She’s the defending female champion at the NZ Pole Legends competition. Earlier this month, Koko was first runner up in the Masters 40 category at the World Pole Sports Championship in Japan.

‘‘I have no gymnastics back-