Daisuke Ikezaki, Japan’s Ace, Talks about the Best Parts of Wheelchair Rugby: “I Want People to Experience the Intensity, the Sound of Impact, and the Sensation of Speed

Agile movement even with zero grip strength

In September, Japan finally won the gold medal in wheelchair rugby at the Paris Paralympics. The driving force behind this success was Daisuke Ikezaki (46, Mitsubishi Corporation).

During an attack and defense battle near the try line, Ikezaki was surrounded by opponents and moved sideways. Surrounded by opponents, Ikezaki made a small move to the side, and at that moment, he backed up for a try!　Ikezaki is now regarded as one of the world’s top wheelchair rugby players, but he has zero grip strength in both hands and cannot hold the hand rims (rings attached to the outside of the wheels). It is a complete mystery how he maneuvers his wheelchair (a wheelchair for wheelchair rugby), let alone the agile movements he displays in games.

He says, “It has nothing to do with grip strength. I started using a wheelchair when I was in junior high school, first in wheelchair basketball, then switched to rugby, and have been playing wheelchair sports for 31 years now, so I have my own way of rowing and chair skills. In my case, when I row, I move the tire as if I were tapping it with the base of my palm. When I stop, I press my elbow against the tire.

Ikezaki is not the only athlete who cannot grip the hand rim. Unlike wheelchair basketball, wheelchair rugby players must have disabilities in their upper limbs (fingers and arms) and lower limbs (below the thighs), and some players have little or no trunk function.

Each player is assigned a score in increments of 0.5 depending on the degree of disability. Ikezaki has a score of 3.0. The match is played four-on-four, and the teams are organized so that the four players have a total of no more than eight points. Players with disabilities ranging from 3.0 to 3.5, such as Ikezaki, are called “high pointers,” and their main focus is on attacking. Players with disabilities of 0.5 to 1.5 are called low pointers and are mainly responsible for defense.

The high pointers tend to get most of the attention at the games, but one of the attractions of this sport is the system that allows all players, both light and heavy, to stand on the court and play their roles.

Japan won a long-sought gold medal at the Paris Paralympics, but in previous Paralympics, the semi-finals have been a daunting task.’ Japan was also considered a gold medal contender in Tokyo in 2009, but lost to Great Britain in the semifinals.” In London in 2012 and Rio in 2004, Japan also lost in the semi-finals, and in Paris, the semi-final against Australia was a paper-thin battle to the death.

With 14 seconds left in the final period, tied 47-47, the ball was in Australia’s court. A single pass by Australia would have resulted in a try, and with so little time remaining, there was no way for Japan to win. And the ball was in the hands of Australia’s absolute ace, Riley Butt.

However, Ikezaki tackled Butt with such ferocity that Butt’s desperation pass was cut off by Ike Yukinobu (44), and the game went into overtime with the score tied. The match went into overtime tied, with Japan winning by a narrow 52-51 margin.

Everyone thought we would lose in the semifinals again,” Ikezaki said,

I didn’t think we would lose at all. I didn’t have any feelings of winning or losing. I reached out desperately and the ball hit my hand. If we had made a mistake, we could have been fouled, but we had to play aggressive defense to get the ball. What we have done up to now is firmly ingrained in our bodies, so we were able to bring it out on the court without any emotional turmoil, and as a result, I think we were able to achieve our goal of winning the gold medal.