A press conference for the NHK Cup (May 14–17, Tokyo Gymnasium) was held on May 13 at the competition venue. The NHK Cup also serves as the second selection for the World Championships (opening October 17 in Amsterdam, Netherlands) and the second selection for the Nagoya Asian Games (opening September 19 in Aichi Prefecture). Aiko Sugihara (TRY AS), who finished fifth at the All-Japan Individual All-Around Championships in April and won a gold medal on floor exercise at last year’s World Championships, expressed her determination: “I will increase my vault difficulty by bringing back the double-twisting Yurchenko after five years. Among the four events, I have been especially focused on the vault.”
The double-twisting Yurchenko on vault had been sealed away since the Tokyo Olympic qualifiers. However, Sugihara struggled at the All-Japan Championships, hampered by lower back pain that flared up in late March, and could not achieve high scores. Aiming to secure a place on the national team, she decided to reintroduce the skill. “I had been practicing it this winter and was ready to use it at the All-Japan Championships, but injuries to my back and ankle prevented me from doing so. So at the NHK Cup, I’m excited to revive it and enjoy the performance. It’s been since the Tokyo Olympic qualifiers, so there is some fear, but I’ve changed the technique from back then, which has greatly reduced that fear. I’m just going to do it with confidence,” she said with heightened spirits.
She draws strength from the golden words of a legend. During Golden Week training at the NTC, she received direct guidance from Kohei Uchimura, who dominated the all-around competitions at the 2012 London and 2016 Rio Olympics. “He gave me advice on things like the angle of my takeoff,” Sugihara said gratefully. In addition, she also received advice from Kenzō Shirai, a member of the gold medal-winning team at the 2016 Rio Olympics, to further strengthen her performance.
Since women’s scores at this competition carry over half of their All-Japan points, the gap between Sugihara and top-ranked Misa Nishiyama (Namba Club) at 3.67 points is quite narrow. Having won this event for the first time in ten years last year, Sugihara aims to regain momentum on that auspicious stage.
◆World Championships team selection: Both men’s and women’s teams have five spots. For men, the top three finishers at the NHK Cup, with scores carried over from this meet, will be selected. For women, the top four finishers, with half of their All-Japan points carried over, will earn spots. The top two men and top three women will also secure places for the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games in September. The remaining spots will be filled by athletes who can contribute to the team competition.
