Despair of a Beautiful Track Athlete Ai Kinukawa Who Wishes to Become a Completely Different Person

Ai Kinugawa, 34, a former member of the World Athletics Team, is a “beautiful athlete” who was plagued by repeated injuries and intractable diseases while achieving high school and junior high school results that caught everyone’s attention. Following the article ” Part 1: The Hellish Days of Ai Kinugawa’s Career as a Top Cosplayer, ” which introduced her struggles and suffering as an athlete, we would like to reveal the reason for her dramatic transformation into a top cosplayer and her third life, in her own words.

“I was aiming for the London Olympics in August ’12, but I was once again plagued by injuries, such as my Achilles tendon. I underwent surgery, but I couldn’t quite return to my original form. When I failed to qualify for the national team, I lost my goal and felt quite depressed.

I am fiercely competitive and somewhat moody. My desire to win is stronger than most people’s. However, if I can’t be the best in the world anymore due to injuries, there’s nothing I can do about it. I felt like I was done with track and field. I left Mizuno, where I was affiliated, on March ’15.”

Having withdrawn from track and field, feeling liberated from the pressure, Kinukawa. gradually began to lose sight of herself. She didn’t know how to navigate her second life.

“Since middle school, I had only done track and field. I didn’t even know how to buy a train ticket. Even when I considered part-time work, I didn’t know how to write a resume. I spent about six months to a year wondering what I should do from now on.”

Always talking about athletes.

Even after stepping away from track and field, the people she met continued to bring up topics related to her athletic career. Even though she was no longer a professional athlete. It bothered her that she was only seen as an athlete, and gradually, Kinukawa distanced herself from public appearances.

“Occasionally, when I’m mentioned in the media, they introduce me as a vanished genius. At that time, I was in despair over my situation of being nobody. I wanted to turn away from the painful reality. Every day, I earnestly thought about becoming someone completely different from who I had been.”

In Kinukawa’s mind, there was a world of anime and manga. As a child, she was obsessed with Disney, and during track and field tournaments, half of her suitcase would be filled with manga.

“I read manga of all genres, like ‘Attack on Titan’ and ‘Yowamushi Pedal.’ Besides track and field, manga was my only hobby. Actually, around 2014, while I was still with Mizuno, I admired characters from anime and manga and began cosplaying. Manga saved me. After leaving track and field, I vowed to become a different person, started cross-dressing, and officially began activities as a cosplayer.”

Her cosplay name is Renya. From 2021, she consecutively won the Best Costume award in the renowned magazine “Cosplay Mode” for two years. Posting various cosplay photos on her X (former Twitter) account quickly garnered over 20,000 followers.