インターハイ2冠へ！わずか数秒にすべてを懸ける 水泳『飛び込み』石沢遥斗選手(18)が乗り越える10mの恐怖と五輪への夢

From the takeoff to the splashdown, it's only a few seconds. Everything hinges on that single moment. This summer, a high school student from Nagaoka City is aiming for the top spot in the swimming competition of "diving." Haruto Ishizawa (18), a third-year student at Teikyo Nagaoka High School and a member of the Nagaoka Diving Club, started competing in the sport in the first grade of elementary school. This "young warrior," who has won the national junior high school championships twice in a row and has experience in international competitions, will be challenging for a double crown (national championship) in his final summer Inter-High School Championships, competing in both "springboard diving" and "platform diving," events in which he was a disappointing runner-up last summer. ■ Entry speed exceeding 50 km/h and the terror of 10 meters The highest platform for platform diving is "10 meters," equivalent to more than three stories of a building. After overcoming the fear that makes your legs tremble just looking down from above, what awaits is the tremendous impact upon landing in the water. The moment of a beautiful "no-splash" entry into the water, with almost no splash, the speed acting on the body exceeds 50 kilometers per hour. Announcer Tomohiro Sakabe, who covered the story, also experienced the dive himself, and the next day he was sore, with bruising on the soles of his feet. He always wears wrist supports to reduce the strain on his wrists, and we covered his grueling training, which sometimes involves more than 100 dives a day. ■ Aiming for "Two Inter-High Championship Titles" and Beyond That, the Olympics His signature move is the "three-and-a-half forward somersault in a shrimp position," where he rotates three and a half times forward in the air while maintaining a beautiful posture with his knees extended. "By practicing with a strong will and determination, I can grow more and more," says Ishizawa. We followed the passionate challenge of this 18-year-old as he pushes forward towards his big dream of competing in the World Aquatics Championships, the Asian Games, and the Olympics during his final summer of high school.