Gold-medalist Yui Ohashi’s childhood journey: from Sickness And Injury to Winning at the Olympics

“ The difference between the impossible and the possible lies in a man’s determination.”

– Tommy Lasorda.

Born in 1995 Hikone, Japan, Yui Ohashi is a professional swimmer from Japan. She began swimming at the age of 6 after being encouraged to pursue it by her sister. She was then expertly mentored under coach Norimasa Hirai whom she credits to being her motivation and the reason behind her success, says Olympics.com.

However, she faced a major setback in college by dislocating her left kneecap which delayed her entry into national and international competitions till 2015 when she entered into the National Championships in Japan and came 40th. Deeply affected by this failure, she considered quitting the sport altogether. She was further defeated after she was diagnosed with anemia in the same year.

However she persevered, keeping in mind her philosophy – “I believe that I can do it.”. She made her comeback in the 2017 World Aquatics Championships, finishing with a silver medal and a national record, says Wikipedia. Talk about a winning attitude!

She went on to win several accolades such as the Best Swimmer Award at the Japan Aquatic Awards in 2017 and 2018, and the Kozuki Sports Award by the Kozuki Foundation in Japan in 2019, amongst others. But once again in 2019, she faced another obstacle. She began battling anxiety and stress over her performance stating that “The [2015] experience was probably the turning point of my swimming career. I thought that I would never have to suffer like that again, but in 2019 I hit another wall. The problem was mental, and there was no clear solution.”. Again, her dedication to the sport and her winning attitude helped her overcome – “Things don’t always turn out the way I hope it would, but I’ve been able to collect my thoughts…..thinking about why I compete or what I want to do in the future, and experiencing all these different thoughts and feelings have made me a more mature person.” says Ohashi. 

With a renewed, determined and passionate mindset, Ohashi went and won a gold at the women’s 400m individual medley at the Tokyo Olympics this year. Even more impressive was the fact that this was her first ever Olympic event!! A woman of determination, talent and courage, her inspiring journey with sickness and injury shows the power of a positive attitude and empowerment to young athletes everywhere. 

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