People :
Set a new world record in the 100-metre unicycle sprint
Mr. Yuta Ando

Born in Aichi in 1985. Graduate of Koyo prefectural high school in Nagoya City. Sophomore in the School of Sports Sciences. Won the 100m and 400m races in the 2003 All Japan Unicycle Meet. Won the 10km marathon at the 2004 International Unicycle Convention and World Championships. Set new world record in the 100-metre unicycle sprint this January. In his free time, he likes to play billiards, go shopping, write in his weblog, listen to music, and watch movies. [URL]http://yuta-ando.com/

His honest words are one of the factors that draw a lot of people toward him. He told us that ever since he left his hometown in Aichi a year ago and started his new life in Tokyo from scratch, a lot of people around him have been supporting him. "I have always felt that I'm really lucky to be surrounded by bunch of people who make me happy, and I can never thank them enough!" He speaks with a carefree smile on his face, but he wasn't just a "lucky" man. "I was quite surprised in high school when one of my junior high teachers told me that I always seize a chance on my own. I realized that I had always been conscious of what's going on around me. There's no way I can meet a lot of people unless I go visit a lot of places, and there's no way I can keep in touch with them unless I talk to them. What he told me made me aware of the importance of talking to people even more." And of course it was because he took the trouble to go to his old junior high school and because he had built a trusting relationship with his teacher that he was that he was able to have that conversation.

In the School of Sports Sciences, he met a lot of "developing" sports players just like him. He said that even though unicycle practice is individual, by listening to the athletes of different kinds of sports and watching them playing, he never feels alone. "My buddies talk about silly stuff, but the next moment they are practicing so hard, and observing that gives me a powerful incentive for being the best not only with the unicycle, but in every sport!"

He is also more highly motivated in his studies than the average student. "It sounds like big talk to want to excel in both studies and athletics, but I know it's hard to make a living just from sports. In the future, I don't want be live off the glory of past successes--I want to be recognized for what I'm doing at the moment." That is why he took the regular college entrance exam instead of applying under a separate admissions system for athletes. Now there is so much he wants to learn that he doesn't know where to start. "I want to be in the first rank not just as a unicyclist, but also as a man. If I become famous among children and all sorts of people, it could lead to the popularization of the unicycle." He talked with his eyes bright just like a little boy. There will always be a lot of people gathering around Ando, who never contents himself with his present condition and keeps on expanding his field of vision.