Rikako Ikee, who won the women's 100-meter butterfly stroke and was appointed as the representative of the medley relay of the Tokyo Olympics.
The full interview after the race.
“You can win a long time ago”
Immediately after the race, Ikee was asked about his current feelings on the NHK broadcast.
"I never thought I could win the 100 (meters), I was much less confident than the Olympic qualifying five years ago, and I thought I could win a long time ago. However, I've been practicing to win well, and at the end I entered this race with the feeling of "I'm home", so even if I'm very hard and hard, my efforts will definitely be rewarded. "I thought
that the turn did not match in the qualifying semi-final and there was an improvement point on the contrary, so I did not think that the 57 second range would come out, and I did not think that the relay dispatch time would run out. So I'm very happy. "
"Honestly, this 100 (meter) butterfly is the event that I thought it would take the longest to come back, so I wasn't really aiming for the victory, but I'm happy to be here no matter what. I was so happy that my friends sent me out with all my might at the end. "
" I didn't think that this applause (at the venue) had reached me, so the ranking was decided. I was very happy at the time, and I can't really put it into words. "
" I said that I didn't think it would take 7 seconds, but I thought it would be about 8 seconds 1 even if it came out, but I'm really, really happy. "It
was a race that I was very confident about. I haven't been dispatched yet, but I'm not sure if I'll be a representative yet, so I have 100 free forms left, and I have three more, so be careful. I want to do my best. "
“I'm very happy to be back here”
It is a question and answer for the interview.
Question: How are you feeling now?
"I think I'm starting to feel more and more in a situation where I haven't been able to sort out my feelings yet."
Question: First of all, what are your feelings?
"I didn't break the standard record for individual dispatch, so I did, but I wonder if I really did. I feel a little like that. I was really surprised to see the ranking first, rather than the time. After seeing the ranking, I saw the time and turned off the relay dispatch. For the first time, I got a lot of joy and various emotions. "
Question: Who wants to convey joy?
"I haven't told anyone yet, but when I left the changing room, the manager was waiting. He was with me while I was in the hospital. He was very pleased, and not only the manager but also my family and in front of the TV. I'm very happy to be able to win the championship in front of the people who support me. "
Question: (Time) Did you reach 57.07?
"I think I've come this far with the feeling that the last fluffy thing was better than the qualifying and semi-finals, and the rest."
Question: How do you feel?
"I wanted to be in the 3rd place, but in the corner of my head I wanted to win a little. I was able to swim without worrying about other athletes during the race. I wonder if it was a good race
Question: Did you give your personal best three times?
"It's still a lot farther than my original personal best, but I think it was a great experience to be able to put out 57 seconds and in a game with great pressure. I started swimming from scratch and said from scratch. I'm glad I came back so quickly in my
heart
. "
Question: How many minutes does the cherry blossom in my heart bloom?
"Is it about 7 or 8 now?"
Question: How can it be in full bloom?
"I wish I
could win a
gold medal or a medal at the Olympics someday."
Question:
Did you have a
hard time getting out of the pool?
"I was so happy that I couldn't really put it into words or express it, and even for that moment I remembered a lot of things that I had had a hard time with, but I came back to this point. I was very happy about that, and my body was pretty tight, and I couldn't get up. "