Paralympic Swimming Naohide Yamaguchi Gold medal for "gratitude" and "challenge"

Naohide Yamaguchi won the gold medal at the Tokyo Paralympic Games, a men's 100-meter breaststroke, breaking his own world record while participating in the Paralympic Games for the first time.

"Thanks" and "challenge" support the 20-year-old swim.

Gratitude and bow

There is a scene that impressed me with Yamaguchi, who always responds politely with honorifics to the interview.

In 2019, at the World Championships held in England, he won a gold medal by setting a new world record while appearing for the first time.

Immediately after the race, Yamaguchi muttered "Thank you" instead of showing a guts pose and a look of joy, and bowed many times.

It is said that the bow of gratitude to the people who held the tournament and those who supported me came naturally.

For the power of hometown Ehime "citrus juice"

I will never forget the feeling of gratitude for my hometown Ehime, where I was born and raised.

"It's a really good place with the sea and delicious food." At

competitions and training camps, we pack a large amount of local specialty "citrus juice" in a suitcase and bring it with us.

When I asked Yamaguchi, who said that he was giving out not only to himself but also to his colleagues and related parties, he said, "I want everyone to drink because it is rich in vitamins and good for the body." rice field.

I wanted to swim without forgetting to thank the people who supported me with the corona virus and the people who held the tournament for the first Paralympic Games.

"Challenge" behind rapid growth

Another keyword that supports Yamaguchi's growth is "challenge."

In 2017, when we started para-swimming in earnest, the time recorded was in the 1 minute 10 seconds range, but in the last 4 years we have shortened the time by more than 7 seconds.

In the background, we have taken on the challenge of overcoming each issue one by one.

One of Yamaguchi's challenges was the start.

For Yamaguchi, who specializes in "first-come-first-served" races that jump out at the start and ride speed with a dynamic swim that makes use of the large legs of 30 cm and the muscles around the soft shoulders, the start is a big key.

The 2019 World Championships, which won the championship, also set a new world record by taking advantage of the lead in the early stages of this race development.

Behind this record was a bitter memory of a tournament held in Glasgow, England, six months before the World Championships.

I finished in the final with a time to break the Japanese record at that time, but it is not recorded.

The start was slightly earlier, and he was disqualified for the first time in his competitive life due to flying.

Yamaguchi looks back on that time.

"I'm still lacking in knowledge of the rules of international competitions, and the time to signal the start is longer than in domestic competitions, so I'm confused. "

after that endured until the last minute, we were conscious of the fact that vigorous start, after this tournament, never was disqualified by flying.

For other events to strengthen breaststroke

Yamaguchi's challenge is not limited to the favorite breaststroke.

Thinking that "there are hints that can be used for breaststroke in other events, such as the feeling of racing," he set out to strengthen the butterfly stroke.

In the Butterfly, which was the first event of the Paralympics, he set his personal best in the qualifying and the final and finished in 4th place.

Achieve two goals with a large-scale swim

The Tokyo Paralympic Games, the favorite 100-meter breaststroke, welcomed by Yamaguchi, who keeps breaking records every time he swims.

In qualifying, he set a new Paralympic record.

Even in the final, I jumped out of the polished start.

In the last, I raised the pitch earlier than usual when I turned back at the top with a dynamic swim using a big body.

Yamaguchi, who did not give up the top from beginning to end, won the gold medal with a time of 1 minute 3:77, which set his own world record.

We have achieved both of the two goals that we had announced before the tournament.

After the race, Yamaguchi said, "I'm worried if I'll be able to put out the 3 second range again in the future," but the Japanese national team officials said that in the future, the 1 minute 2 second range and the 1 second range will be released. He says he may be able to set the time.

The 20-year-old large swimmer, who never forgets to be grateful and continues to take on challenges, has endless possibilities.