Rihanko Ikee participated in the Olympic relay competition.
Rebirth is always the most beautiful story in the sports arena.
The emotion belonged to 21-year-old Rihanako Ikee, who had overcome leukemia and appeared at the Tokyo Olympics. Although only signed up for the women's 4×100 freestyle relay and medley relay, as an inspirational model, Chi Jiang's story always brings strength.
Yes, Chi Jiang has gone too hard this way, and even in an interview with her before the Olympic Games, she was criticized by Japanese netizens for being "selfish".
"A year ago, at this time, I was in an unimaginable environment. The postponement of the Olympic Games is an arrangement of fate that allows me to prepare for the Olympics with all my might..."
Maybe Chi Jiang's words will indeed be misleading, but if you understand her story, it seems to be a little more understanding.
Screenshot of Ikee Rihanako's social media.
Salute to the pool
On August 29, 2020, more than 10,000 people watched the tokyo metropolitan swimming competition at the Tokyo Metropolitan Swimming Special Competition.
With short hair and a thin body, Ikee Rihanako has changed a lot from the girl that many people remember - the last time she participated in the competition was 1 year and 7 months ago.
The Tokyo Metropolitan Special Was a comeback battle for Rihanako Ikee, who competed in the 50-meter freestyle and swam 26.32 seconds, ranking first in the group and fifth overall (there is no preliminary final in this competition), but it was more than 2 seconds slower than the national record of 24.21 seconds in the Japanese event that she personally held.
According to Chi Jiang Lihanako's own description, "This is almost the level of my first and second grades. ”
On February 12, 2019, the world sports world was in an uproar. Rihanko Ikee made a statement on her personal social media that she had to undergo treatment because she was diagnosed with leukemia.
Rihanko Ikee at the countdown ceremony to the Tokyo Olympics.
Once, born in 2000, Ikee Rihanako has brought too many surprises to people since her debut, and as a talented girl in the Japanese swimming world, she holds Japanese and even Asian records in many sports.
At the 2018 Asian Games in Jakarta, Ikee Rihanako single-handedly won 6 gold and 2 silver, becoming the first swimmer to win 6 gold medals at the Asian Games, and forced Sun Yang to win the Asian Games mvp, she is considered a strong contender for the gold medal at the Tokyo Olympic Games...
Compared with the previous glory, everything is like a world away, but from a leukemia patient to a swimming pool, all this achieved by Ikee Rihanako in front of her eyes is enough to make everyone moved.
The moment she stepped out of the pool, Ikee's eyes were red with tears in her eyes, and then she saluted the pool. She herself knows better than anyone what it means to go from peak drop to starting over.
Ikee Rihanako received treatment.
At her lowest point, she thought of dying
According to Japanese media reports, at first Chi Jiang felt unwell during her training abroad, and then after returning to Japan for examination, she was diagnosed with acute lymphoid leukemia, and just less than a month ago, she was named Japan's best swimmer of the year.
Since being admitted to the hospital in February 2019, Ikee Rihanako has been treated for up to 10 months, during which time she has been treated with anti-cancer drugs and undergoes hematopoietic stem cell transplantation, with basically no physical exercise, and the pain of treatment once made her want to give up her life.
"The process was tens to thousands of times harder than I thought, and I couldn't eat for days." This is the feeling of Ikee Rihanako on social media half a month after receiving treatment, because of the discomfort of chemotherapy, she can not eat, or even watch TV, answer the phone.
Chi Jiang narrates the treatment process.
"At my lowest point, I thought about dying. I felt that if I had to go through such pain, I'd better die. ”
But she eventually persevered. In February 2020, Irie Rihanako resumed onshore training after being discharged from the hospital, and entered the pool for the first time on March 17 that year to "test the waters".
In July 2020, Ikee Rihanako broadcast a 2-hour training session online, when she practiced 4 swimming styles and swam about 3500 meters, before this competition, Ikee Rihanako increased the training frequency from 3 times a week to 4 times a week.
In the view of coach Isamu Nishizaki, "It is most important to be able to ensure the health of the whole year first." But Ikee Rihanako recovered quickly with amazing perseverance, and she returned to the arena faster than expected.
For Chie, who has just recovered from a serious illness, Tomohiro Noguchi, a professor of physical education at the Faculty of Arts and Sciences at Nihon University, also expressed his concern: "The feeling of swimming can gradually regain a part, but the problem is muscle mass and cardiopulmonary function, because with leukemia, the decline in physical strength and muscle strength will exceed our imagination." ”
Ikee Said That She wants to go all out to prepare for the Paris Olympics.
"My bigger goal is the Paris Olympics"
The expert's judgment was not wrong, "The last 15 meters, I have no strength at all..." After the race, Ikee Lihanako recalled the difficulty of the sprint.
But snatching back time from death, she would not choose to give up in the pool she was most familiar with.
"It's a miracle that I can live, and it's a miracle to be able to stand here."
"It's a good start and I'll take this as the start of my second swimming career, I realise I still have a lot of problems and if it's solved, my results can improve a lot."
There is also a little-known story - in July 2019, Ikee Lihanako spent her 19th birthday in the ward, she decorated the ward with various ornaments, and put on a festive beanie hat.
She said she had experienced too much at the age of 18 and only hoped that she would have more good memories in the future.
This memory certainly includes the story of the Olympic Games.
On February 21 this year, Rihanako Ikee won the Japanese championship in the 50m butterfly at the Swimming Open, her first title since her comeback, with a time of 25.77 seconds, which was the fourth in the world at the time.
But she still sees the Paris Olympics as her main goal: "My idea is that even if I compete in Tokyo, it is more likely to prepare for the next Olympics." The biggest target now is the 2024 Paris Olympics, and I will work on it. ”
Author: The Paper's reporter Qi Dong
Source: The Paper