People :
Competitor in Short Track Skating at the Torino Winter Olympic Games
Mr. Hayato Sueyoshi

Hayato Sueyoshi was born in the Osaka Prefecture in 1982 and graduated from Seifu High School. He is now at the fifth grade in the educational department and belongs to the Reiji Matsumoto seminar. Drinking and eating are his hobbies.

He has previously been chosen as a member of the Japanese team for the Salt Lake City Winter Olympics and has won the championship in the 1000 meters event at the All Japan Competition of 2005.

Sueyoshi participated in the 1500 meter sprint at the Torino rink while surrounded by all the excitement that can be felt during such Olympic events. He commented that “many of the people coming to the Olympic Games were not familiar with this sport.” Nevertheless, he continued, “they became excited whenever one competitor overtook another regardless of whether they understood the rules and the nature of the competition.” Thus, “the event had a different atmosphere from that of a World Competition in that the audiences were at the center of the games.”

From the intonation of his Kansai dialect and his fluent way of speaking, we can readily ascertain that he has quick mind. His specialist knowledge is evident when he explains that “as I change the angle of the blade relative to the ice, I can feel the difference in the force acting on my legs. With this feeling, I can check the effectiveness of my cornering. If the conditions are bad, the blade slips into completely the opposite direction.” He goes on to add that “by contrast, if I am in good shape and start hitting my stride, then there will be more options I can take up during the race.”

Sueyoshi had been skating since he was in the fifth grade of elementary school. He has always had such skill as a skater that in any race, he would have such a wide lead that no other skater could catch up with him. In his early years, he was able to set new elementary school student records in skating. As he recalls, “I realized that I could become a Meccya Hayai Yatsu (very fast man in Kansai dialect) when I was a junior high school student and competed at the World Junior Competition as a Japanese representative.”

In his home environment, Sueyoshi had no competitive rivals, so being able to meet foreign skaters in competition has provided him with an extra stimulus. The Nagano Winter Olympics were held when he was in the third grade of junior high school. His senior with whom he had practiced received the gold medal at these Games. In retrospect, he said that this was the “first moment when I felt that the Olympics were close to me.” He went on to add that “even if you make a mistake, you still have a chance to recover because this competition is against other humans who are fallible, too. Times are dependent on uncertain elements, such as strategies between the competitors and accidents, such as blade falling into a crack in the ice.” His enthusiasm is assured because “no event is ever the same as another and there are always some changes. That is why I can take up the challenge with a fresh mind every time I compete.”

Sueyoshi loves his sport and it has become a natural part of his life. Watching him compete from the front row of the rink is the best way to experience the powerfulness of short-track skating and to get the feeling of being alive. In this coming season, we hope to see brave Sueyoshi go on to have ever more success in his sport.