Ryosuke Irie marked 52.99 seconds in the qualifying for the men's 100-meter backstroke at the Tokyo Olympics, and decided to advance to the semi-finals.
Irie, who is the captain of the Japanese national swimming team, participated in the 5 qualifying groups for the men's 100-meter backstroke and showed an aggressive swim from the beginning, marking 52.99 seconds, and advanced to the semi-finals in 5th place overall.
The men's 100-meter backstroke will be held in the semi-finals from around 11:30 am on the 26th.
Irie "I want to be alert and work on each race"
Irie said, "I've been in the 52 seconds range for the first time in a while, but I don't think I can fight at this time yet. Tomorrow morning is really important, so I want to recover and work on each race without being alert."
In addition, as the captain of the Japanese national swimming team, he was enthusiastic that "Today, Yui Ohashi has won the gold medal and is gaining momentum as a team. I hope I can swim with an atmosphere and results that I can lead as well."