Yusuke Suzuki (racewalker)

Yusuke Suzuki (鈴木 雄介, Suzuki Yūsuke, born 2 January 1988) is a Japanese racewalker.[1] He has represented Japan in the 20 km event twice at the World Championships in Athletics and competed at the 2012 Summer Olympics.[2] He is the pending world record holder for the 20 km walk with a time of 1:16:36 hours at an event in his home town of Nomi in 2015.[3]

Yusuke Suzuki

Suzuki in 2014
Personal information
Nationality	Japanese
Born	(1988-01-02) 2 January 1988 Nomi, Ishikawa, Japan
Height	169 cm (5 ft 7 in)
Weight	57 kg (126 lb)
Sport
Country	Japan
Sport	Athletics
Event(s)	Racewalking
College team	Juntendo University
Medal record World Championships 2019 Doha 50 km walk Asian Games 2014 Incheon 20 km walk World Junior Championships 2006 Beijing 10,000 m walk

Suzuki competed in race walking from a young age and his international debut came at the 2004 World Junior Championships in Athletics. He was the 10,000 metres walk bronze medallist at the 2005 World Youth Championships in Athletics and the 2006 World Junior Championships in Athletics.[4] He began competing in the senior ranks a year later and came sixth in the 20 km walk at the Asian Race Walking Championships and fourth at the 2007 Summer Universiade.[5] In the following two years he came tenth and fifth at the Asian Race Walking Championships. A personal best time of 1:22:05 hours in 2009 earned him a place at the 2009 World Championships in Athletics but he was among the last walkers to finish in the 20 km race.[6]

He won the 2010 Asian title with a new best of 1:20:06 hours, but again did not perform well on the global stage, taking 40th place at the 2010 IAAF World Race Walking Cup.[5] He placed fifth at the end of year Asian Games. The 2011 World Championships in Athletics saw him establish himself among the world's top walkers, as he placed eighth overall in the 20 km event.[4] He pushed out the pace at the beginning of the 2012 London Olympics, but finished back down the order placing 36th. The start of the 2013 season saw Suzuki break the Japanese record twice – he won the national title in 1:19:02 hours then took his second Asian title with a finish in 1:18:34 hours in Nomi, Ishikawa.[7]

Suzuki was selected to once again to compete for Japan at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo.

References

1. "Yusuke Suzuki". London 2012. Retrieved 15 September 2012.
2. "Men's 20km Race Walk Results". London 2012 Olympics. Retrieved 15 September 2012.
3. "Suzuki breaks 20km race walk world record". IAAF. 15 March 2015. Retrieved 8 April 2018.
4. Yusuke Suzuki Archived 13 November 2012 at the Wayback Machine. IAAF. Retrieved on 17 March 2013.
5. Yusuke Suzuki. Tilastopaja. Retrieved on 17 March 2013.
6. 2009 World Championships Men's 20 km race walk Archived 4 September 2012 at the Wayback Machine. IAAF. Retrieved on 17 March 2013.
7. Suzuki breaks Japanese record at Asian Race Walking Championships. IAAF (10 March 2013). Retrieved on 2013-03-17.

External links

• Yusuke Suzuki at World Athletics
• Yusuke Suzuki at the International Olympic Committee
• Yusuke Suzuki at Olympics at Sports-Reference.com (archived)

Records
Preceded by Yohann Diniz	Men's 20 km walk world record holder 15 March 2015 – present	Succeeded by Incumbent