Japan has been starved of swimming success in recent times but with the Olympics two years away junk food-loving teenager Shin Ohashi has emerged as their next big hope.
The 17-year-old, who stands just 169cm, has posted the two fastest 200m breaststroke times in the world this year and is aiming for the world record at this year’s Asian Games.
Earlier this year he came within almost a second of the 2:05.48 record held by China’s Qin Haiyang.
Photo: Reuters
Ohashi has already won gold at the Asian Games in the 100m breaststroke after a dead heat with China’s Dong Zhihao, beating Qin into third place.
Not bad going for a teenager who admits he enjoys nothing more than a bag of chips and a can of fizzy juice.
“I sometimes eat too much of that stuff before lunch and end up not properly eating lunch,” Ohashi was quoted as saying by the Olympic Channel. “I know I shouldn’t, but I can’t stop. I know it’s not good for you, but hey, once it’s in your stomach it’s all the same.”
Japan has enjoyed huge success in swimming, but its pool of talent has shown signs of drying up in the past few years.
After winning 11 swimming medals at the 2012 Olympics and seven in 2016, they won three at the home Tokyo Olympics in 2021 and just one at the Paris Games two years ago.
FROG KING
Ohashi has emerged at the right time and has been tipped to follow in the footsteps of Japanese breaststroke great Kosuke Kitajima.
The “Frog King” won the 100m-200m double at the 2004 Athens Olympics and repeated the feat four years later in Beijing.
Speaking at the Asian Games this week, Kitajima said Ohashi could become “a swimmer who strikes fear” into his rivals.
“He has a lot of potential and I think he can do really well on the international stage,” Kitajima said. “I think he definitely has the potential.”
Kitajima pointed out that Ohashi is much smaller than many of his “gigantic” breaststroke rivals.
Qin, a multiple world champion, stands 192cm.
“He’s compact and has speed, endurance and a real appeal,” Kitajima said of his colleague.
Ohashi believes he can break the 200m breaststroke world record when he goes head-to-head with Qin in tomorrow’s race.
He said he suffered a cold in the run-up to the 100m breaststroke and was “frustrated” not to win the race outright.
“I got a little bit tired at the end of the 100m so that’s a bit of a worry, but I’ve been practicing for the 200m really well,” he said. “I want to at least achieve a new personal best.”
Ohashi’s family made him start swimming as a three-year-old because they wanted to make sure he would not drown in his grandmother’s pond.
He has come a long way in a short space of time and could find himself being the face of Japan’s swimmers for the Los Angeles Olympics in 2028.
Kitajima believes he has the temperament to handle it.
“If we wants my advice I’ll give it to him,” he said. “He has a great team around him and I hope they will keep supporting him.”
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