About Toyo University Toyo University and the Tokyo Games
Three Toyo students and 12 alumni were chosen to represent Japan at this year’s Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games. The total 15 athletes were the most ever athletes from Toyo to participate in a single Games.
Yui Ohashi (2018 graduate) won two gold medals in both the Women’s 200m and 400m Individual Medley. Ohashi was the first Japanese female swimmer to win gold in both events at a single game, and Koki Ikeda (2021 graduate) also took silver in the Men’s 20km Race Walk. We were constantly inspired throughout the Games by the impressive performance of Toyo athletes.
Messages from Students Who Participated in the Games
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Swimming Club Natsumi Sakai 2nd year student, Department of Business Law, Faculty of Law |
| Event:Swimming: Women’s 4×100m Freestyle Relay Overall 9th place in preliminary round: 3:36.20 |
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| To keep training and aim higher at the next Olympics It was my first international tournament since I have enrolled at Toyo University, so I wanted to approach the Games with responsibility, awareness, and determination. I participated only in the Freestyle Relay at the Tokyo Games, so I spent more time watching the races of my teammates than actually swimming myself. But for the next Paris Games, I want to keep training to further improve my swimming. There were no spectators at the Games, but I am very grateful for the support I received from many people. As I have met many new people since joining university, I have become more aware that I am able to swim because I am supported by many people. I will continue to put everything I have into swimming, so please continue to cheer me up. |
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Swimming Club Rio Shirai 4th year student, Department of International Tourism Studies, Faculty of International Tourism Management |
| Event:Swimming: Women’s 4×200m Freestyle Relay Overall 9th place in preliminary round: 7:58.39 |
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| Please look forward to seeing me a stronger swimmer for the Paris Games. I enrolled at Toyo University with the aim of participating in the Olympic Games. That dream came true at this year, so it was definitely a good decision. What I felt after my experience at the Tokyo Games was that in order to compete on world stage, I have to train at a world level. I am already preparing for the Paris Games, so please look forward to seeing me even stronger going forward. I also want to get closer to the level of the senior athletes who approach competition with the resolution that they are representing Japan on the world stage. I have received many messages of support since the time I was chosen to represent Japan at the Tokyo Games. Thanks to this support, I have been able to become who I am today. Thank you. |
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Track and Field Club Sprinting Division Aoto Suzuki 2nd year student, Department of Business Law, Faculty of Law |
| Event:Track and Field: Men’s 4x400m Relay Overall 10th place: 3:00.76 (Tied for Japanese Record) |
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| I will aim for next year’s World Championship with the pride of having competed on the world stage. When this season started, I never thought I would be competing on the stage of the Olympic Games. I was first chosen for the Japanese team at the World Athletics Relays in May, and I think gaining the confidence that I can compete with foreign athletes allowed me to be chosen to compete at the Tokyo Games. At my debut at the Olympics, my relay team tied for the Japanese national record. During the race, I ran with the world’s best athletes, and I was able to experience the tense atmosphere of the Olympics. I received so many messages of support for the Tokyo Games. I had never received so much support, and I felt a great sense of responsibility in being chosen for the Japanese team. My next goal is the individual 200m at the World Championships, so first of all, I am going to train to beat the qualification time. |
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Results and Review from Toyo Athletes and Coaches of Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games
●Athletes
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Yui Ohashi 2018 Department of International Tourism Studies, Faculty of Regional Development Studies graduate |
Koki Ikeda 2021 Department of Economics, Faculty of Economics graduate |
Akira Aizawa 2020 Department of Economics, Faculty of Economics graduate |
| Swimming Women’s 200m Individual Medley Gold medal: 2:08.52 Women’s 400m Individual Medley Gold medal: 4:32.08 |
Track and Field Men’s 20km Race Walk Silver medal: 1:21:14 |
Track and Field Men’s 10,000m 17th place: 28:18.37 (Season's Best) |
| I am very grateful for all the continued support I received from Toyo University during my time as a student and even after graduation. I was thrilled to have so much support from everyone at Toyo University. | I recently graduated this past March, and I do not think this result would have been possible if I did not enroll at Toyo University. I had great coaches and was able to learn a lot over the four years. | I was nervous because this was my first Olympics. However, it was a fruitful Games for me because I now know what I need to work on for the Paris Games in three years. I will train towards my goal of finishing in the top eight that slipped my grasp at the Tokyo Games. |
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Reona Aoki 2017 Department of Business Administration, Faculty of Business Administration graduate |
Sho Inaba 2018 Department of Regional Development Studies, Faculty of Regional Development Studies graduate |
Julian Walsh 2019 Department of Health Care and Sports, Faculty of Human Life Design graduate |
| Swimming Women’s 100m Breaststroke Overall 19th place in preliminary round: 1:07.29 |
Para-equestrian Individual Grade III 15th place: Score: 67.529% Team Grade III 9th place: Final score: 70.118% |
Track and Field Men’s 400m Overall 37th place in preliminary round: 46.57 |
| It was my dream to participate in the Olympics. The Tokyo Games was a place where I finally achieved this target. However, I was nervous at the Games, and couldn’t perform as I wanted, so I could not produce results. But the process leading up to the Games was important time for me and gave me great experience. | I could not get a medal nor finish in the top eight, but I was able to set a personal best. Thanks to the support and encouragement from many people, I made it. I will work hard towards the World Equestrian Games and the Paris Games three years away. | I always think, thanks to the constant support from everyone, I am able to run. Thank you. I have a fantastic alma mater in Toyo University, and I want to continue to give it my all. |
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Masatora Kawano 2021 Department of Information Sciences and Arts, Faculty of Information Sciences and Arts graduate |
Yoshihide Kiryu 2018 Department of Business Law, Faculty of Law graduate |
Hibki Tsuha 2020 Department of Health Care and Sports, Faculty of Human Life Design graduate |
| Track and Field Men’s 50km Race Walk 6th place: 3:51:56 (Season's Best) |
Track and Field Men’s 4x100m Relay Final: DNF |
Track and Field Men’s Long Jump Overall 26th place in preliminary round: 7m61 |
| I was able to finish 6th in Tokyo Games thanks to the great environment of Toyo University and the friendly coaching of Coach Mizuho Sakai during my time at university and even after graduation. I am going to train hard for the World Championships and Paris Games. | I feel always supported by Toyo University, during good times and bad. I can only return the favor with results, so I want to show my gratitude with a medal next time. | I once again feel glad that I was able to spend my student life at Toyo University. I was not satisfied with my results at the Tokyo Games, but I want to continue to train hard towards the World Championships and the Paris Games |
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Kosuke Hagino 2017 Department of English Communication, Faculty of Letters graduate |
Yuma Hattori 2016 Department of Economics, Faculty of Economics graduate |
Ryoga Yamaguchi 2019 Department of Social Welfare, Faculty of Sociology graduate |
| Swimming Men’s 200m Individual Medley 6th place: 1:57.49 Men’s 4x200m Relay Overall 12th place in preliminary round: 7:09.53 |
Track and Field Men’s Marathon 73rd place: 2:30:08 (Season's Best) |
Paralympic Ball Sports Men’s Goalball Quarterfinals: Elimination, 5th place |
| I was not satisfied with my results at the Tokyo Games, but I was able to swim each race with all I had. I am delighted to have been able to swim in the final of the Tokyo Games which we did not know if the games would be held or not. | I could not reach my goal of finishing in the top eight, so it was a very frustrating Games for me. I have lots to reflect on, but I want to turn this frustrating experience into determination to give it my all towards setting a new Japanese record and the Paris Games. | I have already started training for the Paris Games which will be held in three years. During my time at Toyo, I grew up thanks to assistance from many staff at the Student Affairs Office and various other people, including teachers. I will appreciate your continued support and advice. |
●Coaches
| Toshiyuki Sakai Track and Field Club Long-Distance Division Head Coach |
Mizuho Sakai Track and Field Club Long-Distance Division Race Walk Coach |
Hiroyasu Tsuchie Professor, Faculty of Law/Track and Field Club Short-Distance Division Coach Men’s Track and Field Olympic Games Coach |
Norimasa Hirai Professor, Faculty of Law/Swimming Club Head Coach Japan Swimming Team Head Coach |
| I am very happy with all the support we received from Toyo University. Following the London and Rio de Janeiro Games, we produced a record of eight Olympic athletes from the Track and Field Club in the Tokyo Games. Despite the Games being postponed by a year, I am very grateful for all the hard work that went into holding the Games. | If the games were not postponed, the race walk athletes Ikeda and Kawano would have competed as students. I am sure they were concerned because this did not come to be. However, they went to the Games with Toyo pride in their hearts, and they were encouraged by the support of many people. Thanks to this, they were able to produce results. Thank you. | Despite the one-year delay and social confusion, I am very grateful for holding the Games and providing us a stage to compete. Thank you to everyone at Toyo University for your constant support. | The Tokyo Games were supposed to take place great fanfare in 2020. I think it was difficult for the athletes to maintain their motivation for the one-year postponement. I think the athletes did a fantastic job given the pressure that it was a home Games with no spectators and the opposition that some people did not want the Games to take place. |