Continue the challenge
Make the team stronger

College of Health and Welfare Third-year students
Track and Field Club Ekiden Team
Graduate of Hotoku Gakuen High School

Yusuke Inaba

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The joy of taking on challenges that can be experienced on land

I've loved running since I was a child. I admired the Hakone Ekiden (long-distance relay race) and started track and field seriously in junior high school. Track and field is a sport that constantly challenges you. The sense of accomplishment when you break your personal best is priceless. I want to continue competing for a long time to come.

J. F. Oberlin University The key to aiming for this was Director Mayaka's presence. I thought that if I ran under a coach who knows both Japan and Kenya, I could absorb a lot. The coach's words about wanting to make the team even stronger were also powerful. I thought that by aiming for the Hakone Ekiden together, I could grow greatly, so I decided to enroll in J. F. Oberlin University.

Each and every one of us aims for Hakone.

This year's Hakone Ekiden is the 100th anniversary of the race. The top 13 universities from the qualifying rounds will qualify for the main race. All the team members have started talking about "Hakone" frequently, and they are actively participating in daily training. There are times when the training is tough, but I also try to motivate them by saying, "If we keep going like this, we won't be able to go to Hakone!"

Currently, what we value most is "considering the intention behind the practice." By thinking about the purpose of the practice and what points we should pay attention to, we can improve the quality of our practice. We can't say that we're getting the results we want yet, but we've gradually gotten stronger through things like the summer training camp.

Last year, only two runners finished the qualifying race in under 65 minutes. This year, everyone is aiming to finish in under 65 minutes. My personal goal is to run the qualifying race in 62 minutes and 29 seconds. If it's like previous years, this time will put me in contention for the top Japanese runner. I believe that if I can create a good atmosphere by giving the team momentum, we can qualify and win.

I want to run in the Olympics as Japan's top athlete.

I was able to set a new personal best in the 10,000 meters at the Kanto Intercollegiate Track and Field Championships this May. Last year, I suffered an injury and had a difficult period where I couldn't run, but I feel that the results of focusing on strengthening exercises and bike training are now paying off.

After graduating from university, I plan to continue competing in a corporate team. Eventually, I'd like to challenge myself with a full marathon and run in the World Championships and the Olympics as a top Japanese athlete. To achieve that, I want to work hard as a team to achieve results in ekiden (long-distance relay races). Now and in the future, I want to create a team that people around us can look up to.

Interview date:
This was done in August 2023 for the "Obirin Sports" website.

Continue the challengeMake the team stronger

Main content

The joy of taking on challenges that can be experienced on land

Each and every one of us aims for Hakone.

I want to run in the Olympics as Japan's top athlete.

Related content

Continue the challenge
Make the team stronger