Two athletes from the Subaru men's corporate team who have already secured their places on Japan's teams for this summer's Paris Olympics and Paralympics visited the Gunma prefectural government to talk about their plans for the Games. Both set to run in their second-straight Games, Paralympics 1500 m and 5000 m runner Kenya Karasawa, 29, and 3000 m steeplechase specialist Ryuji Miura, 22, made the trip to the government offices.
Miura is originally from Shimane, and joined the Subaru team in April. On May 10 at the third Diamond League series meet in Doha he was 5th in 8:13.96, clearing the 8:15.00 Olympic standard and securing his place on the Paris team. While a student at Juntendo University Miura took 7th in the Tokyo Olympics 3000 mSC, the first time for a Japanese athlete to make top 8 in that event. At Paris, he said, "I want to medal and run a PB." The 3000 mSC includes a hurdle with a pool of water on each lap, a point where abrupt changes in position can happen easily. "It's a kind of race that brings together a lot of different elements that make it exciting to watch," he said. "I hope everyone enjoys it."
Born in Shibukawa, Karasawa competes in the T11 class, the division for severe visual impairment. He was named to the Paris team on May 26. At the Tokyo Olympics, when he was still running for the Prefectural Social Welfare Corporation, Karasawa ran the same two events and won silver in the 5000 m. In Paris, he said, "I want to run a PB and take the gold." At the World Para Athletics Championships in Kobe last month he was involved in a sprint finish in the 5000 m and won only bronze. "In Paris I want to be aggressive and go out hard in the first half," he said. "I'll focus on developing my stamina."
Karasawa lost his vision in 4th grade due to a retinal detachment. He discovered para sport at the time of the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Games and got interested in taking part. "I hope that the way I run will inspire other people with the same disability to take it up too," he said.
The Subaru corporate team is based in Ota, Gunma. This is the first time its athletes have made an Olympic or Paralympic team. Governor Ichita Yamamoto offered them his support, saying, "I hope you both run your best at the Games and bring courage and motivation to all the people of our prefecture."
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