January 22, 2022 12:07
Yotaro Sato (18), a third-year high school student from Onagawa Town, will participate in the 120-kilometer class of the “27th Japan Classic Powerlifting Championships” to be held in Hyogo Prefecture | search for”>Akashi City, Hyogo Prefecture on February 27. At the 54th prefectural tournament in November last year, which was his debut match, he won the championship, far exceeding the standard record, and won the right to participate.
Only 6 months have passed since the competition started in earnest. “I want to do my best to make the people of Furusato happy,” he promises to make a leap forward.
Under the influence of his father Seiichi (62), who is in the 5th grade of judo, Mr. Sato worked on judo from the third grade of elementary school at Onagawa Judo Sports, and won the prefectural rookie competition 60 kg class in the second year of Tohoku Gakuin. Even when he was a high school student, he was ranked 3rd in the 43rd National Judo Championships Prefectural Tournament Open Weight, and was runner-up in the 70th Prefectural High School Comprehensive Athletic Meet 100kg class in June last year.
It is said that tools such as barbells were familiar to Mr. Sato. With the advice of Seiichi, who has a qualification as a training instructor, he has been working hard for muscle training for several years to improve the level of judo.
After retiring from the judo club, he went to a private gym in Rifu-cho and started powerlifting in earnest. With a height of 162 cm and a small size, the tough lower body cultivated in judo and the strength of the trunk made him stand out.
At the prefectural tournament that doubled as a selection meeting in November last year, he participated in the 105 kg class. In general, for college students, the bench press, squats, and deadlifts recorded a total of 555 kg, which is 50 kg higher than the standard record. Being the youngest, he surprised the people involved in the tournament.
Mr. Sato says, “I want to aim for a total of 600 kilometers in Japan Classic.”
From April, I will go on to Tohoku Gakuin University Faculty of Letters. I plan to stop judo and focus on powerlifting. After the Japan Classic, we will refrain from the Hokkaido / Tohoku block selection tournament scheduled to be held in Aomori prefecture in June. “I want to work hard to win the championship,” he said.
On the 23rd, the Onagawa Sports Association presented Mr. Sato with the Physical Education Encouragement Award at the 2021 Awards Ceremony held jointly with the Town Sports Boy Scouts Headquarters at the Town Machinaka Exchange Center Hall to praise his success.
