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"I practice with the belief that if I work hard, I can achieve good results."

Naoki Nishiguchi, 4th year student, School of Human Sciences

In front of Building No. 101 Tokorozawa Campus

Naoki Nishiguchi represented Japan at the 2024 Asian University Martial Arts Championships, achieving remarkable results by placing 5th in tai chi and 1st in tai chi sword. tai chi is a traditional Chinese martial art that can be enjoyed by people of all ages and genders as both a competitive sport and a lifelong sport, and it is said that there are as many as 150 million tai chi enthusiasts around the world. We spoke to Nishiguchi, who practices tai chi and tai chi sword every day, about what motivated him to start competing, what he has learned in his student life, and his outlook for the future.

--What kind of sport is tai chi/tai chi sword?

tai chi is one of the traditional Chinese martial arts along with chang quan and nan quan, and is characterized by its relaxed movements. In competitions, competitors compete on a scale of 10 based on their expressiveness, jumps, and the level of difficulty of their balance, and it is a performance-based sport. tai chi sword is based on the movements of tai chi, but uses a sword instead of fists, and is considered an application of tai chi.

-What made you start competing?

Due to my parents' job transfers, I lived in Shanghai for four years, from the third grade of elementary school. Soon after moving, I wanted to do something "Chinese," so I joined the elementary school's kung fu club with a friend from the Japanese school on a whim. In the kung fu club, I worked on changquan, and gradually improved and began to find changquan "fun." Also, by interacting with Chinese people and culture through Chang Fu, I realized that my own perspective had broadened and I had grown, which motivated me to continue practicing changquan even after returning to Japan.

Later, when I was in junior high school, my coach advised me that tai chi would be a better fit for me, both in terms of the characteristics of my movements and my personality, so I changed my discipline from changquan to tai chi.

Photo on the left: Taken in a martial arts class in Shanghai when I was just starting out.
Right: When Nishiguchi went to Shaolin Temple with members of the Kung Fu Club in his fourth year of elementary school. Nishiguchi is second from the left in the top row.

--Please tell us about when you won the tai chi sword division at the 2024 Asian University Martial Arts Championships.

Since it was my first time competing, I entered the tournament with the feeling of testing my strength, but I never expected that I would win, so I was more surprised than happy. At the moment I won, it didn't really sink in, but after the match, when I was talking with my parents, I really felt that I had won.

Looking back, I think that because tai chi sword was my second event, I was able to perform confidently without straining my shoulders, which led to a good result. Because there is no professional martial arts system in Japan, I am inferior to athletes from other countries in terms of training environment and time, but I made every effort to secure practice time by traveling four hours round trip to the training grounds, practicing on my own before practice, training in my free time at university, studying videos while traveling, and other such methods, and continued to hone my performance. I believe that these efforts helped me close the gap with athletes from other countries and achieve the result of winning.

Nishiguchi is pictured on the left, center, after winning the 2024 Asian University Martial Arts Championships in Harbin, China.

--Even before you won the tournament, you must have had many difficulties in your career. How did you overcome them?

I continued practicing with the belief that "if I work hard every day, I can achieve good results." During my junior years, from age 8 to 18, I often didn't have enough skill and couldn't go to national competitions. Just when my results were gradually improving and I was about to aim for international competitions, the COVID-19 pandemic hit. At that time, I thought, "It's wrong to stop trying just because I'm not getting results when there's no place where I can show what I've been working hard for." I continued competing with that belief, and thankfully, I was selected to represent Japan at the Asian University Martial Arts Championships. I felt that even if there was no clear goal or a place where I could show what I had been working hard for, I should continue to work hard.

A photo of Nishiguchi performing with his team, the Osaka Martial Arts Team, in his second year of high school in 2020. Nishiguchi is in the top center.

And the reason I continue competing in this way is because I want to live up to the expectations and support of those around me. Another driving force is my desire to make tai chi, which is still a minor sport in Japan, known to many people. The appeal of tai chi is that it can be enjoyed both as a competitive sport and as a lifelong sport. Even elderly people in their 70s and 80s can enjoy tai chi, and when others discover its appeal, I feel rewarded and glad that I continued.

--Why did you decide to study at School of Human Sciences at Waseda University? Do you feel that what you learned at university has been useful in your sport?

I've always liked sports and was interested in muscles and the structure of the human body. Also, when I was in high school, I wanted to make tai chi popular, so I became interested in sociology and psychology. This led me to want to study human sciences, which can be studied across disciplines, including biology, sociology, and psychology, regardless of whether you are in the humanities or sciences.

What I learned at Waseda which has brought to life my tai chi is the Chinese language communication class offered at GEC. About half of the students are not native Japanese speakers, and all of the TAs (Teaching Assistants) are from China, so through this class I have gained a deeper understanding of Chinese culture and language. When I go to an international competition in China, I have the opportunity to actually speak Chinese, so I feel that what I learned in class is useful.

--Please tell us your future goals.

As for competitions, I would like to represent Japan at the World Championships in 2025 and the Asian Games in 2026. Currently, tai chi is not an Olympic event, but I hope to be able to compete when it is adopted as an Olympic sport someday.

At university, I am a member of Professor Taichi Hara 's (Faculty of Human Sciences) seminar and am researching a compound called urolithin, which is found in pomegranates. I am also focusing on my activities in the seminar, so I would like to first produce solid research results in time for the academic conference in May. I am currently looking for a job and am also considering going on to graduate school, but either way, I would like to continue practicing tai chi.

At Tokorozawa Campus Festival in 2024, the amazake that the seminar group developed in collaboration with a company was on sale. Nishiguchi is on the left.

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Interview, text and photography: Waseda Weekly Reporter (SJC student staff)
Nanami Yoneda, 3rd year, School of Social Sciences