By Chris Gallagher and Hyun Oh
TOKYO, July 3 (Reuters) – The competition at the London
Olympics is already guaranteed to be intense but three Japanese
gymnasts may have an extra source of motivation as they vie for
gold medals: sibling rivalry.
“When it comes to competing, of course I don’t want to lose
to the younger two,” grinned Kazuhito Tanaka, 27, referring to
his sister Rie and brother Yusuke.
“I’d lose my standing as the big brother,” he told reporters
after a recent training session ahead of the trip to London,
where all three siblings will make their Olympics debut.
It is rare for two siblings to become top-tier athletes,
three is even rarer. This will be the first time Japan sends
three siblings to compete in gymnastics at the Olympics.
For the Tanakas, whose parents were also gymnasts and their
father a coach, a common dream and strong work ethic runs in the
family, 25-year-old Rie told reporters at a separate practice
session.
“The bond we have through hard work is really strong. And
since we were little, we all wanted to go to the Olympics,” said
Rie, who is captain of the Japanese women’s team.
Kazuhito was the first to follow in their parents’ footsteps
and take up the sport as a child. Rie became interested after
watching her big brother train, while Yusuke, 22, started
because he did not want to be home alone bored.
Despite being such a family of gymnasts, their father went
to surprising lengths to keep the sport from becoming too much
of a focus in their home life, easing the pressure and helping
them learn to appreciate gymnastics on their own.
“Our dad even made a rule that we couldn’t talk about
gymnastics at home,” said Rie, who won her first national title
in April.
“It was like being in any other home in that we’d pretty
much forget about gymnastics with the conversations we were
having,” she said.
‘RISING TO THE CHALLENGE’
Kazuhito, also a captain, will lead the men in their quest
to recapture the team gold, which they won in Athens in 2004
before taking silver in 2008 in Beijing.
He said he took heart from having his brother on the same
team, but he puts his focus squarely on the squad once they hit
the gymnasium, with everyone on equal footing.
“I try to think of Yusuke more as a team mate than a
brother, and I feel a sense of encouragement from no matter who
my team mate is,” he said.
In the individual categories, the men will be looking to win
their first gold medal since 1984, with Kohei Uchimura, who has
won three consecutive world all-around titles, seen as a strong
contender.
Uchimura came close four years ago, having won silver in the
all-around in Beijing.
While the women have won only one medal, Japan’s female
athletes have enjoyed a recent string of successes, most notably
the women’s soccer team winning last year’s World Cup, and Rie
is hoping some of the magic will rub off on her squad.
“We (Japanese women) are strong at rising to the challenge,”
said Rie, who noted she was more excited than nervous about
competing in the Olympics.
“We’ll use that strength as a weapon to do our best.”
(Editing by Peter Rutherford)
