On the heels of the Japanese Swimming Federation (JASF) revealing its 27-strong lineup for this summer’s Olympic Games, the organization also nominated two athletes as captain and vice-captain for the squad.
Naoki Mizunuma will be the head athlete for Paris, supported by Katsuhiro Matsumoto.
Mizunuma and Matsumoto finished 1-2 in the men’s 100m butterfly at the Japanese Olympic Trials which concluded late last week.
27-year-old Matsumoto clocked a time of 50.96 with 27-year-old Mizunuma right behind in a result of 51.23. Both men dipped under the JASF-mandated selection standard of 51.43 needed to qualify for Paris.
Swimming committee chairman Takayuki Umehara said of the duo, “These two have a lot of experience. We nominated them because we judged them to have the ability to bring things together.”
Paris marks the 2nd Olympic appearance for both athletes while they each have won World Championships medals in their careers.
Mizunuma took 100m fly silver at the 2022 edition in Budapest while Matsumoto earned 200m free silver at the 2019 Worlds in Gwangju.
Last year’s Asian Games saw Mizunuma capture bronze as a member of Japan’s bronze medal-earning men’s medley relay and Matsumoto topped the men’s 100m fly podium.
Upon being nominated for the captain role, Mizunuma stated, “This is my first time being the captain of the national team.
“There are a lot of young swimmers, so I want to be able to effectively communicate with them. I hope we can create a team where everyone feels comfortable.” (Daily Japan)
A total of 13 swimmers on the Japanese roster for Paris will be first-time Olympians, including Yu Hanaguruma and Airi Mitsui.
3 swimmers are just 17 years of age in Mio Narita, Tatsuya Murasa and Mizuki Hirai.
Wow no Seto?
Prob cuz this: https://swimswam.com/daiya-seto-vacates-jpn-olympic-team-captain-post-over-affair/