MATSUMOTO Katsuhiro

General
RECOVERING FROM POSTPONEMENT DISAPPOINTMENT
He admitted that he suffered motivation issues after the postponement of the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo. But he rediscovered his enthusiasm by the end of that year and broke his own Japanese 200m freestyle record at the 2021 Japan National Championships and Olympic Trials in Tokyo. "It was shocking for me to hear about the postponement during the national team's training camp in Toyama, as I had been training with a focus on winning gold that year. I had difficulties raising my motivation levels again and I hated spending every day without a goal. However, I gradually thought that there would be reasons for me to compete the following year. I might not have been ready for a gold medal yet. From the end of 2020, the quantity and quality of training were then increased. My coach Yoji Suzuki also told me to work on increasing my speed between 100 metres and 150 metres in races, and that helped me achieve a national record." (nhk.or.jp, 02 Apr 2021; sanspo.com, 05 Dec 2020; post.tv-asahi.co.jp, 13 Sep 2020)

He became the first swimmer representing Japan to win a medal in 200m freestyle at the world championships when he claimed silver at the 2019 edition in Gwangju, People's Republic of Korea. (SportsDeskOnline, 20 May 2021)