From baffled veterans to motivated newcomers, hopefuls for Japan's rugby sevens national teams are looking ahead to next year's Tokyo Olympics with mixed feelings.
Now that the sporting extravaganza has been postponed due to the spread of new coronavirus infections, all training sessions for both the men's and women's national teams have been suspended.
"It felt like going back to square one after the goal had just been right in front of me," Yusaku Kuwazuru said, looking completely baffled. The 34-year-old candidate for the national team continued, saying, "Because of my age, I have no idea what kind of physical condition I will be in after a year. I can't make sense of it all."
Kuwazuru is struggling to determine how to reach his goal that is now a year away.
Kuwazuru was selected to play in Japan's rugby sevens team for the first time in 2005. Standing 188 centimeters tall with great physical ability, he had been active as a competitive player for a long time. The sport was adopted as an official event at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics. He captained the Japan team, contributing to the team taking fourth in the Games. After that, he stepped away from the national team.
Last year, the Japan team was relegated from the core teams eligible to compete in the World Rugby Sevens Series. Kuwazuru was frustrated with Japan having lost the opportunity to further strengthen its team, but also became motivated, feeling that he could still play in the national team. Japan becoming the host the next Olympics was also a boost of encouragement for him, and he decided to apply for the national team and returned to the squad last summer.
However, having been away from the national team, his current physical condition is "roughly at 60%, compared to the 100% I was at during the Rio de Janeiro Olympics," Kuwazuru admitted. He diligently trains by running and working out at home.
"I'll just do what I can do for now, through that perhaps the conclusion will come to me," he said.
Subhead: Gathering experience
On the other hand, Miyuu Shirako is feeling positive about the postponement.
The 24-year-old candidate for the women's national team participated in her squad's training camp as a trainee for the first time in last February. At Keio University, she dedicated herself to lacrosse and was also selected to represent Japan's U-22 team.
After graduating, she continued to play lacrosse in a club team, but decided to switch to rugby after being recruited by someone who found the 172-centimeter-tall Shirako to be suitable as a rugby player.
"I thought it would be fun to try my hand at something new," she said, recalling the time when she decided to quit her job at an advertising company to focus entirely on the sport.
Shirako has already entered international competitions as a national team member, but the fact that she lacks experience as a rugby player can't be denied. No matter how hard she tried to practice various techniques and tactics physically and logically, she couldn't perform them well in actual games quick decisions and swift action were called for.
Feeling so frustrated, she realized she that she lacked adequate preparation time for competing in the Olympics this summer, so she focused on working on her strengths, such as being a lineout player.
Therefore, for her, the one-year postponement is "an opportunity to gain more experience in the extended period of time." She has also reworked her training regimen to allow for training sessions to overcome plays and movements that aren't to her strengths.
Currently training at home, Shirako watches match videos every day as image training on movement patterns and to deepen her understanding rugby sevens tactics.
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