Until junior high, I focused on baseball, and as part of that training, I ran long distances. It was unexpected even for me, but in my third year of junior high, I won the section prize in the ekiden I entered. This led me to join the track and field club in high school, and from there, I began to focus seriously on track and field.
One reason I wanted to continue ekiden at university and move to J. F. Oberlin University was the presence of coach Shinyaka Stefan. The coach is from Kenya, a marathon powerhouse, so his daily training is of course at a high level. That's why I felt that joining this team would help me become stronger. I sometimes train alongside foreign athletes who come seeking guidance from the coach, and I receive a lot of inspiration from top-class athletes in Japan and around the world.

Also, I feel that all of Obirin's teammates share a 'spirit of challenge.' 'Let's take on challenges.' This is a phrase the coach often says to raise the team's awareness. Inspired by those words, for example, in daily practice, instead of setting a safe pace for myself, I aim for a slightly faster pace when running at a pace. Instead of settling for safe moments, I keep challenging myself. I believe this accumulation leads to improved competitive performance.

From my first year of university, I was selected as a member of the team for the Hakone Ekiden qualifying race, but after that, I went through a period where I couldn't get into my stride and my progress stalled. At that time, I asked my teammate, Redama Kisaisa, who has consistently been at the top of the collegiate long-distance running world, about the secret to his strength. He told me, "It's important to maintain a strong belief that you are number one among us." When you stand at the starting line in a competition, everyone is on the same condition. Regardless of each person's condition, you have to run the same distance. I realized that how confidently and strongly you can run under those conditions is what makes the difference in the race. From that moment on, whether I'm training or standing at the starting line in a competition, I've made it a point to maintain a strong belief that I'm the best. These words from Kisaisa have also been helpful in leading the team's mental strength as captain. I feel that having such a talented athlete close by has raised the team's level, even mentally.

Every year, we train with the goal of participating in the Hakone Ekiden. However, I felt that this goal was becoming a matter of habit. I felt that simply aiming to participate in the Hakone Ekiden by following past customs would not change the current situation. So this year, we set our team slogan as "The Sakura-Kin Era Begins Here." It embodies our desire to look ahead, raise the overall strength of the team, and steadily move towards participating in the Hakone Ekiden. This year is the first year of that effort. Our first goal is to finish in the top 20 in the Hakone Ekiden qualifying race. The Obirin Ekiden team has the advantage of having strong Kenyan runners, but we will improve the abilities of each individual runner so that we can secure a ticket to the Hakone Ekiden without relying on them.
I'm not the team's ace, so I won't be leading the team through my running. However, as captain, I want to oversee the whole team, motivate everyone, and build a strong team with a long-term perspective.