The 2005 Amagasaki derailment that killed 106 people affected many other lives, including that of Aiko Okazaki, who represented Japan in the women's individual archery event on Wednesday at the Tokyo Paralympics.
Although the 35-year-old Okazaki lost 132-129 in a tightly contested quarterfinals to eventual gold medalist Chen Minyi of China, she looked satisfied after the match in which she could perform the way she had envisioned.
On April 25, 2005, Okazaki was heading to her university when the train she was on derailed and crashed into an apartment building beside the tracks in Amagasaki, Hyogo Prefecture. Okazaki was severely hurt, with cervical spinal cord injuries. She was paralyzed from the neck down.
She said that after the incident, she began to think: "Life is about what you do. Let's realize what I want to be."
About a year after the derailment, she was discharged from the hospital. She wanted to graduate from university with her friends, so she returned to school. She also started living on her own.
When she started looking for a job, she envisioned herself "living actively in society." She searched for companies that would hire wheelchair users and found a job. She worked hard for six years, doing overtime and going on business trips.
Urged by her mother, who had experience with archery, Okazaki started the sport at the end of 2013.
She said her mother suggested, "You can probably compete in the Paralympics if you practice hard."
Confident in her athletic abilities, Okazaki envisioned herself participating actively in the Paralympics.
She qualified for the national team in June 2019 and set her sights on "making it to the podium by enjoying performing my way."
Although she did not win a medal, "I was able to do something close to what I had imagined," she said with a smile after the match.
"I learned a lot from the accident," she added. "I want to pass on my experience."
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