In the new Paralympic Games, Para-Badminton, the top six players in the world ranking have been nominated as representatives of the Tokyo tournament.
The representative of Para-Badminton, which will be the first official competition at the Tokyo Paralympics, will also have the latest world rankings, which is the result of the annual international competition from March to February last year, plus the results of the competition held in Spain this month. Will be selected.
Of these, regarding the doubles event for men and women, the Japanese Para-Sports Federation decided at the board meeting on the 24th to recommend the top six athletes in the world ranking to the Japan Paralympic Committee, and six are representatives of the Tokyo Paralympic Games. It was decided to.
The representatives were the
women's doubles,
▽ Sarina Satomi and Yuma Yamazaki, who ranked first in the world in the wheelchair class, and
▽ Ayako Suzuki, who ranked third in the world in the class with disabilities in the arms and legs. Noriko Ito,
Men's Doubles,
▽ Daiki Kajiwara and Hiroshi Murayama, who are the 3rd in the world in the wheelchair class.
Based on the selection criteria, 5 of these 6 players, excluding Ito, have been nominated as representatives in the singles event as well.
Wheelchair class Sarina Satomi
Sarina Satomi is 23 years old from Chiba prefecture.
The women's doubles wheelchair class paired with Yuma Yamazaki and the women's singles wheelchair class with relatively heavy disabilities are both Japanese ace rankings in the world.
Satomi got stuck in a traffic accident when he was in his third year of high school, and started working on para-badminton in earnest in 2017.
Having belonged to the badminton club in junior high school, he quickly emerged and achieved the feat of winning a singles gold medal at the 2019 World Championships in just over two years after starting the competition.
At the Tokyo Paralympics, we are aiming to win gold medals in the second category of singles and doubles.
Satomi said, "It may continue to be dark, but I will do my best to make everyone feel better by watching our play," with the spread of the new coronavirus in mind. I commented.
For the tournament, he said, "I'm really grateful to the many people who supported me to come this far. I'm really grateful. I'll smile until the end and aim to be the first queen in both singles and doubles." He stated that he was enthusiastic about winning the gold medal in the second event.
Wheelchair class Yuma Yamazaki
Yuma Yamazaki is 33 years old from Tokyo.
It is ranked 1st in the world ranking in the women's doubles wheelchair class paired with Sarina Satomi, and 4th in the world ranking in the women's singles class with relatively light wheelchair disabilities.
Yamazaki continued to play badminton from childhood to junior high school, but when he was in his first year of high school, he lost his senses from the waist down due to a traffic accident.
After becoming a member of society, he started the competition in earnest in 2014 while raising two children, and at the Japanese Para-Sports Badminton Championships, which decides the best in Japan, he has won the championship for the sixth consecutive time since the tournament was established. It is a person.
At the Tokyo Paralympics, we are aiming to win medals in the second category of singles and doubles.
Yamazaki commented, "I am very honored to be participating in the Paralympic Games for the first time for para-badminton. I want to run through until September so that I can see the best performance."
Class with disabilities Ayako Suzuki
Ayako Suzuki is 34 years old from Saitama prefecture.
Women's singles are ranked 2nd in the world in the class with disabilities in the arms, and Noriko Ito in the class with disabilities in the legs is ranked 3rd in the world in the women's doubles.
The characteristic is an accurate shot that creates a feint or course that shakes the opponent, and the combination with slow and fast is outstanding.
Suzuki has a disability in his right arm and cannot be raised high.
I started playing badminton in the third grade of elementary school and switched to para-badminton when I was in college.
After winning the 2009 World Championships, he retired from active duty at the age of 23, but returned to the competition in 2015 with the aim of the Tokyo Paralympics.
After that, despite a five-year blank, he won the 2017 World Championship again, and continues to make a runner-up and an international tournament in the 2019 World Championship.
Suzuki is aiming to win medals in the second category of singles and doubles.
Suzuki commented, "I am very grateful for the support and encouragement of many people who have come this far. I will do my utmost as a player with the aim of popularizing and developing para-badminton in the future."
Noriko Ito, a class with a disability in the legs
Noriko Ito is 45 years old from Aichi prefecture.
A player in the class with a disability in the leg, Ayako Suzuki in the class with a disability in the arm, ranked 3rd in the world ranking in the women's doubles, and was nominated as a representative.
Mr. Ito commented, "I am very pleased to receive the offer to participate, and I feel more relaxed. I am grateful that the competition has been completed thanks to many people, and I will proceed with preparations firmly."
Wheelchair class Daiki Kajiwara
Daiki Kajiwara is a 19-year-old college student from Fukuoka prefecture.
In the men's singles and wheelchair-friendly classes, the world ranking is 4th, and in the men's doubles paired with 47-year-old Hiroshi Murayama, the world ranking is 3rd.
Kajiwara had a bicycle accident at the age of 13 and cut off his right leg below the knee.
After the accident, he became aware of para-badminton and began to devote himself to it. It was.
Kajiwara said, "Although the severe situation continues due to the influence of the new coronavirus, I am grateful to those who are indebted to me and the essential workers so that I can bring energy to the world with my play. With all my heart, I aim to win gold medals in singles and doubles. "
Wheelchair class Hiroshi Murayama
Hiroshi Murayama is 47 years old from Chiba prefecture.
In the men's singles, a class with relatively heavy wheelchair disabilities, it is ranked 8th in the world, and in the men's doubles paired with Daiki Kajiwara, it is ranked 3rd in the world.
At the age of 34, Murayama developed an intractable disease in which his immunity destroyed his motor nerves, and he could hardly move from his waist down.
After the onset, I started to work on para-badminton because I started to enjoy badminton with my family.
He won his first international championship in 2016, and has continued to win the world stage since then, and he won his long-cherished first victory at the Japanese Para-Sports Badminton Championships, which decides the best in Japan last year.
In addition, he is the representative of the para-badminton team in his hometown of Chiba prefecture, and is also engaged in activities to popularize the competition.
Murayama commented, "The Tokyo Paralympics will win gold medals in both singles and doubles, and will bring the power of sports and the power of human beings to everyone."