Yui Ohashi won the gold medal in the women's 400m individual medley of swimming at the Tokyo Olympics.

Even before the Olympics, I was depressed because I wasn't feeling well, but the background to my swimming on the big stage was the "words" from the surroundings.

The 25-year-old, who achieved the feat of being the first Japanese athlete to win a gold medal in the Olympics, has a delicate personality.



Ohashi, who said that he was "broken" because he didn't get the time he expected just a month ago, was able to continue his swim on the big stage with the support of his surroundings.

Ohashi, who is heading to the final race, pushed his right hand up to the spectators' seats before heading to the starting point.

Beyond that line of sight was the Japanese national team.



Director Norimasa Hirai, who has been instructed since college, sent me the advice of "the second half of the game."



Ohashi jumps into the pool with plenty of time, saying, "It's okay to be a little later than the qualifying."

After finishing his strong backstroke, the turnaround in the first half was 2nd with a 0.45 difference from the top.

I entered with more than 1 second less than the qualifying.

Raise the gear at once from here.

I escaped by making the best use of the physical strength that I had saved in the breaststroke.

The last freestyle that I made a lead for one body was caught up by the next player.



"Don't come, don't come"


"Come here, wall soon"



Ohashi, who finished with his heart in mind, confirmed the first place on the electric bulletin board and hit the surface of the water with his right hand to explode his emotions.

When I got on the podium and picked up the gold medal, I was filled with tears and gratitude to the people who supported me so far.



At the end of last month, Ohashi, who wasn't feeling well ahead of the Olympics, couldn't hide his anxiety.

After finishing the time trial held in Nagano,



"I can't stay in the final,"



one person was weeping at the cool-down sub-pool.

Even though he was still tired during the strengthening period, he said that he was "one-folded" in the 400-meter individual medley, which was about 7 seconds behind his own Japanese record.



At that time, it was Sakiko Shimizu who reached out.

Mr. Shimizu, whom Ohashi has longed for as "Sacco-san," was a teammate who had been practicing with him since last year, but he missed the position of representative at the Japan Championship in April and retired from active duty.


Mr. Shimizu strongly encouraged Ohashi, who was depressed.



He gave me an opportunity to look forward, saying, "That's just the time on the spot, so don't worry, you have to keep your pace!"



And before the race on the 25th, Director Hirai pushed me back, saying, "If you do what you envision, it's okay."

The message that Ohashi received from the two words was "believe in yourself."


The delicate and slightly fragile 25-year-old finally challenged the world alone without hesitation and stood at the top.