After Opting Out Of 2021 Edition, Japan Readies For SC Worlds With Loaded Lineup

64TH JAPAN SC SWIMMING CHAMPIONSHIPS

• Saturday, October 22nd & Sunday, October 23rd
• Tatsumi International Swimming Center, Tokyo, Japan
• SCM (25m)
• Results

With the conclusion of the 2022 Japan Short Course Championships, the nation’s swimming federation has revealed its lineup for this year’s FINA Short Course Championships in Melbourne, Australia.

Japan officially withdrew from the 2021 edition of the championships in Abu Dhabi due to coronavirus quarantine procedures which would have caused logistical difficulties for swimmers training domestically. However, Olympian Daiya Seto went on his own accord, swimming away with the 200m IM and 400m IM gold medals there in Abu Dhabi.

Katsuhiro Matsumoto and Shogo Takeda are also among the Japanese men bound for Melbourne in December, with the former notching a new national record in the 200m free (1:41.67) while the latter accomplished the same feat in the 1500m free (14:29.92).

Although racing mainstay Ryosuke Irie won both the men’s 50m and 100m backstroke races at Japanese Nationals, the 32-year-old will not be competing this December. Instead, the discipline will be taken on by Daiki Yanagawa and Ryota Naito.

However, in the men’s breaststroke events, a familiar name is back in the spotlight, as Ippei Watanabe made the grade. The one-time World Record holder in the men’s 200m breaststroke broke through this weekend, making his first international roster since the 2019 World Championships.

On the women’s side, leukemia survivor Rikako Ikee would up dropping out of the Japanese Nationals qualification meet. She says she wants to focus on 2023 World Championships and the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.

However, two-time Olympic champion from Tokyo Yui Ohashi is expected to represent japan in December, as is breaststroking ace Reona Aoki. They’ll be joined by the likes of Chihiro Igarashi, Rio Shirai and Waka Kobori.

Despite having won the women’s 400m IM, former World Junior Record holder Mio Narita, just 15, is absent from the Short Course World Championships roster. Narita currently ranks #1 in the SCM 400 IM and #3 in the SCM 200 IM.

Update since original publishing: World Record holder Tomoru Honda has opted out of this year’s Short Course World Championships.

Men’s Roster

Yuya Hinomoto
Takeshi Kawamoto
Masahiro Kawane
Kosuke Matsui
Hidenari Mano
Katsuhiro Matsumoto
Shuya Matsumoto
Teppi Morimoto
Ryota Naito
Katsumi Nakamura
Masaki Niyama
So Ogata
Kenta Ozaki
Yuya Sakamoto
Daiya Seto
Yuya Tanaka
Shogo Takeda
Daiki Yanagawa
Kamino Yumejinho (relay only)
Ippei Watanabe

Women’s Roster

Sayaka Akase
Reona Aoki
Mai Fukasawa
Chihiro Igarashi
Katomi Kato
Waka Kobori
Yumeno Kusuda
Airi Mitsui
Yukimi Moriyama
Aoi Nakashima
Miyu Namba
Yui Ohashi
Rio Shirai
Ai Soma
Ayami Suzuki
Miki Takahashi
Karin Uchida
Chiaki Yamamoto