Rocco Solare wins again! Mayuki Fujisawa is “glad to see reliable juniors” and the surprising reason why she is pleased with the rise of her rivals.

Their achievements, including a silver medal at the 2016 World Championships, a bronze medal at the 2018 Pyeongchang Olympics, and a Grand Slam victory, have always been accompanied by the phrase “first in Japanese curling. In addition, their popularity has made it possible for very few people to know about the sport of curling, as they have been named the most popular words in the world. Furthermore, with the men’s and mixed doubles teams failing to qualify for the Beijing Olympics, Loco Solare became a curling icon before we knew it.

Of course, it is a positive thing to be popular and to have people support you, but on the other hand, there was a risk of unipolarity, with the entire curling world relying on Rocco Solare. The pressure to keep running with the curling world on their shoulders may have existed unconsciously. In the past few years, it was impressive to hear him say with a reassuring smile after the final game of the season, “Now I’m going to take a little rest.

He wins the world’s most prestigious title but struggles in Japan. He welcomes the presence of a strong rival with a smile. Normally, this would be a contradiction, but in the case of Loco Solare, it is possible. Or perhaps it is a feeling of relief.

Rivals that threaten them, such as Hokkaido Bank Fortius (now Fortius), which won the Pacific-Asia Championships (now the Pan-Continental Championships) in 2021, and Chubu Electric Power Company (which abstained from the World Championships last year due to a new type of coronavirus infection), which was on the verge of qualifying for the playoffs, have been improving their competitiveness. They are increasing their competitiveness. In addition, promising newcomers such as Hokkaido Bank have emerged.

The competition is now strong enough for them to relax and “do as they please,” thinking, “We don’t have to carry the burden of Japanese curling on our shoulders alone. The popularity of the sport has also been dispersed in a positive sense, and the athletes may have gained a sense of security that the light of curling will not go out no matter when they come to the end of their athletic careers.

We wanted to go to the World Championships more than anyone else.

I can’t stop being excited to be able to compete in the World Championships” (Yu Yoshida)

As each of them said at the press conference after winning the Japan Championships, Loco Solare’s next goal is the World Championships.

The burden of being the top runner and the future of curling, in a sense, has turned out to be shared by formidable rivals and reliable juniors. It’s time to start focusing 100% on the content rather than the results, to do curling the way we want to do it, the way we enjoy it, and then choose how to win. And that is what makes Loco Solare so strong.

I can only look forward to seeing what kind of curling they will show us now that they have been unleashed. The World Championships will start on March 18.