Swimming, judo, gymnastics, wrestling, sports climbing.
What kind of competition / event can you expect the Japanese gold medal that comes to your mind at the Tokyo Olympics, which is about two weeks before the opening?
Personally, I would like to mention it to Toshikazu Yamanishi (Aichi Steel), the men’s 20km representative of the racewalking, which may seem a little surprising.
Yamanishi won the World Youth and Universiade in high school and college, and won the Doha World Athletics Championships in 2019. However, the career of “Kyoto University graduate” is often highlighted, and since the racewalking event is more modest than marathons, there is an impression that the media rarely delves into its abilities and spiritual aspects. It was.
This time, based on the words of the interview with the person himself, I would like to write the reason for “dissecting” Toshikazu Yamanishi, a racewalker without educational background, and recommending him as a gold medal candidate.
Gold medal candidates repeat “Raise the ground”
Since the fall of 19 when Yamanishi became the world champion, there are words that have been repeated in post-race interviews. It is “earth power”.
(February 17, 2020 Sankei WEB version, Japan Championship 20 km walk)
<Updated the tournament record that I made two years ago for about 33 seconds. "The condition at the time of the tournament was better two years ago. I was able to confirm that the ground strength was improving," he was convinced.(May 16, 2021 Yomiuri Shimbun Online, after the Chubu Business Group Championship)
I can read it and be convinced. However, I was wondering if the word “earth power” is not concrete, so my imagination wouldn’t spread, and if I became a world champion, it would be so easy to improve.
When I asked him for an explanation, he gave me a splendid “answer” with a bitter smile, saying, “It’s difficult to answer with a short boxed interview.”
