Although it was a cold winter day outside, inside the classroom at the Tokorozawa Campus serving as the venue for the event, students from the School of Sports Sciences and members of the mass media were feverish with anticipation. As soon as
Mr. Sadaharu Oh, known as the "king of the world," appeared, everyone grew even more excited. Mr. Oh spoke for about thirty minutes altogether. Being able to attend this lecture proved to be a valuable experience that also was a chance for me to reexamine my own mental attitude.

This lecture took place on January 21 in honor of the unveiling ceremony for the memorial plaque in honor of the Ike "Akihiro" Ikuhara & Peter O'Malley Memorial Sports Management Class, which is held to commemorate the establishment of the School of Sport Sciences. Mr. Oh was selected to give this lecture because he is a Specially Recommended Alumnus of the school, and was also close friends with Mr. Ike Ikuhara and Mr. Peter O'Malley.

I thought that the portion of the lecture when Mr. Oh discussed ambition and effort was the most impressive. "If you are satisfied, it is hard to move forward. Instead, it's important to be ready to learn from anything that happens, and to have the desire to climb even higher.... The top players in any field aren't successful by accident. A person's life is like a iceberg ? you can't forget the part made up of effort that is hidden by the water," he said, emphasizing the importance of both effort and ambition. And as a player and coach who has left such impressive records behind him, Mr. Oh's words have great persuasive power.

At university, students have a great deal of free time and many chances to meet both friends and rivals. It is also a great chance in life, which can be compared to an iceberg. This lecture changed my way of thinking by making me want to find something that I can immerse myself in, have ambition, and expend great efforts ? to make my time have significance instead of just spending it aimlessly.