The two youngest members of the Japanese team, aged 14, will participate in the Asian Paralympic Games, helping Japan overcome its challenges

On the 19th, the second day of the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Para Games, Ayano Tsujiuchi (Mitsubishi Corporation) set new tournament records in the women's 100m freestyle (visual disability S13) with a time of 1 minute 0.84 seconds, and Aira Kinoshita in the women's 200m freestyle (intellectual disability) with a time of 2 minutes 9.80 seconds, winning the gold medal. Takayuki Suzuki (Goldwin) won the gold medal in the men's 50m freestyle (motor dysfunction S4).

Shizuka Hanya (Toyota Loops) won gold in the women's 52 kg judo class (totally blind), and Yujiro Seto (Fukuoka Prefectural Itoshima High School) won bronze in the men's 70 kg class (low vision). Shota Kawamoto (Yamato Sangyo) won the gold medal in the men's 3,000-meter individual bicycle overtaking (motor dysfunction C1-2).

A 14-year-old showing his innocence

In the men's 200-meter swimming individual medley (motor dysfunction SM6), the youngest member of the Japanese team, 14-year-old Ryuga Yamada (Yokohama City Kamishirane Kita Junior High School), finished the race in 7th place. My power decreased during the breaststroke and I was unable to ride the waves, and looking back, I said, ``I couldn't swim the way I did.''

Even so, he improved his personal best set in September of this year by 5 seconds. After scoring, he showed off his white teeth and said innocently, ``The cheers were so loud.''

The world of parasports has faced the problem of the main lineup remaining unchanged for many years, due in part to the small pool of athletes.

Takayuki Suzuki, who won the gold medal in the men's 50m freestyle swimming competition (motor dysfunction S4), has participated in the Paralympic Games six times. Suzuki, 39, says, ``We need young athletes in order for (Japanese) para-competitive swimming to flourish in the future.''

Mayu Togo (Minami-Oita Junior High School), who is also participating in the same swimming competition, was born in 2012, the same year as Yamada. Japan's para sports world has seen significant improvements in its environment and increased recognition since the 2013 Tokyo Paralympic Games were decided to be held. Yamada and his generation, who grew up under such circumstances, benefited from improved status through training camps at the national training center.

Both Yamada and Toko will participate in multiple races at this tournament. Everything will help me prepare for the Los Angeles Paralympics in two years, and the Brisbane Paralympics in six years. The Asian Para, held for the first time in Japan, also serves as a stage for the next generation of athletes to gain valuable experience.

Copper Seto ``It's not satisfying''

Yujiro Seto, a judo player in the men's 70kg class (with low vision), said with a grim expression, ``I'm not satisfied'' with the bronze medal result. In the semifinals, he again succumbed to Nurilayev (Uzbekistan), whom he defeated in the World Championship final in September.

After winning the gold medal at the 2024 Paris Paralympic Games, he became a high school teacher and practices ``less than 10%'' of what he did before Paris. ``Honestly, I wasn't confident that I could show anything better than Paris,'' but I still aimed for the Asian Paralympics. Since the 2021 Tokyo Paralympics were held without spectators, ``I wanted to play in front of a lot of people cheering me on (in Japan).''

Regarding the future, he only said, ``I want to organize my thoughts before making a decision.''