Reading Time: <1 minutehttps://www.sponichi.co.jp/sports/news/2021/05/03/kiji/20210503s00056000232000c.html At the World Relay Championships being held in Poland, the Japanese team finished first in the qualifying round and second overall.The Japanese team showed a strong performance in the finals and won the silver medal.Powerful countries such as the United States and Jamaica did not participate, but they proved that they are at a level that can compete against the rest of the world.In particular, Kaito Kawabata's running was amazing, as he was the fastest lap on the Japanese team in the qualifying rounds and ran fast in both races in the finals, making a major contribution to winning the silver medal.
While many athletes have sponsors, Kawabata had no support from sponsor companies and was in a tough living situation and training environment, but with the support of coach Aoto Shinji of the Chukyo University track and field team, his talent blossomed. As he was not a top athlete, he did not have a professional contract from a company, his training environment was not good, and he was not even invited to the Japanese national team training camp. He won a place on the relay team in the World Relay selection race. Aoto, an Olympian, has been running the track and field team with me for many years, and is a master who trained Ichikawa Kana at Chukyo University. This talented track and field coach, who represents the Tokai region, was impressed by Kawabata's high potential and asked me to teach him thoracic training. Kawabata, who has an honest heart and ambition, quickly accepted and absorbed the instruction, put it to use in practice, and quickly produced results. His performance is steadily improving, and in the near future, he has the potential to break the Japanese record set by the amazing Takano Susumu, which has not been broken for about 30 years. In addition, he is expected to be in a position to win a medal in the relay as a key athlete at the Paris Olympics. We will do everything we can to support him, both medically and financially, so that his talent is not crushed. Kawabata contacted us immediately from Poland to express his joy. After returning to Japan, we will be honored to be able to provide training guidance to help him win the Japan Championships. Although the Tokyo Olympics are in doubt, the success of athletes gives us courage.
