FOR THE GAMES

Timaru Herald, Volume CXLV, Issue 21180, 29 October 1938, Page 11

FOR THE GAMES

Japan Preparing SWIMMING CANDIDATES Every effort will be made by the Japan Swimming Federation to send a men’s swimming team to the 1940 Olympic Games to defend the championship honours which were first won at the tenth Olympiad at Los Angeles in 1932 and then retained at the eleventh Games in Berlin in 1936. Indications are that it will be sent even if no other athletes are dispatched because of the emergency situation prevailing in the country, states a Japanese paper received from the office of the Consul-General.

It is on development of a strong Olympic team that plans of the federation are based. Picked after the national championships at the Koshien pool, near Osaka, in August were 45 candidates and 12 alternatives for the Olympic team?, covering speed swimming and diving, both for men and women, and water polo. Shigeo Arai, of Rikkyo University, who swam in the world champion Japanese swimming team at the Olympic Games in Berlin in 1936, was the brightest performer in the national championships this year. He negotiated the 200-metre free-style in the 50metre pool in 2 minutes 10.6 seconds for a new world's record over the long course on the concluding day ’of the meet. On the second day he had defeated Tomikatsu Amano, rising star of Nihon University, who in the Kanto district championships had shattered Arne Borg’s 11-year standing record of 19 minutes 7.2 seconds in the 1500metre event by 8.4 seconds, in the 400metre free-style championship by a touch. Aral's time was rather slow (4 minutes 47 seconds) but he set a national record for the 300-metre mark at 3 minutes 30.8 seconds. Amano was in poor form, and, while he won the 1500-metre free-style championship on the third day, his time was far below his sensational performance in the Kanto championships. It was 19 minutes 19.2 seconds.