Japanese men's 400 m national record holder Kentaro Sato (Fujitsu) sat for online interviews on June 18. Sato's 44.77 NR cleared the Paris Olympics qualifying standard of 45.00, and if he wins the National Championships later this month in Niigata he'll be named to the Paris team. "To put it simply, it's the meet that decides who's #1 in Japan," he said. "I haven't won a national title yet. I'm preparing to run for time, for place, and for an Olympic spot."
As he trains Sato is paying close attention to the condition of his left Achilles tendon, which he injured two years ago. "I'm more focused on time than place," he said. "If I can run 44 at Nationals then I'll get the place I'm looking for. If I can put together a 400 m the way I want to do it then I can run a national record. That means focusing on something faster than just the NR. Sub-44.5 is what I'm thinking."
Also entered at Nationals are top domestic rivals Fuga Sato (Mizuno), 44.88 last year, and Yuki Joseph Nakajima (Fujitsu), 45.03. It'll be the ultimate Japanese showdown, and an important factor in choosing the members of the Olympic 4x400 m medal contender relay team. As the team leader, Sato hopes for a high-level battle, saying, "I'm really happy the level in Japan keeps going up. I hope everyone on the team gets there with a sub-45 time."
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translated by Brett Larner
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