Daiya Seto: Federation Furious Over Nightlife Divorce Reports and Risking National Team Ban

“Mother Complex” Divorce

An Olympic medalist in men’s swimming, Daiya Seto, has been hit with divorce reports.

The November 21st issue of Weekly Bunshun detailed the story under the headline “Daiya Seto’s Mother Complex Divorce.” According to the report, his wife, former Japanese national diver Yuka Mabuchi, became fed up with Seto’s unchanging playboy habits and initiated the divorce.

The two, who had been dating since university, married in 2017. They had a daughter in 2018 and a second daughter in 2020. However, their once-harmonious married life did not last long.

In 2020, shortly after the birth of their second daughter, Seto’s affair was exposed by Weekly Shincho. It was reported that he was caught having a secret meeting with a flight attendant from an airline in broad daylight at a hotel. The following week, Shincho published a report titled “Affair Medley,” detailing his rendezvous with a woman from a regional area and a hostess, forcing both Seto and Mabuchi to apologize.

“After the Shincho report, it seemed like the couple reconciled for a while, but Seto’s womanizing habits didn’t change. He continued to misbehave, secretly engaging in affairs while keeping it from Mabuchi, and this time it was exposed. In fact, Seto’s late-night outings had long been rumored in the industry, and most people are saying, ‘He hasn’t learned a thing’ and ‘It’s surprising it hasn’t been exposed until now,'” said a sports reporter.

According to Bunshun, the two began living separately this spring. The sports reporter mentioned that around that time, Mabuchi experienced some changes.

“With the Paris Olympics approaching in the summer, attention was expected to turn toward Seto as a representative of Japan. At that point, Mabuchi reportedly instructed the media not to refer to her as ‘Daiya Seto’s wife’ and requested that no photos of the two together be used. At that moment, there were growing concerns about their marriage.”

Amidst this, swimming industry insiders are shaking their heads, saying,

“Of all the times, why now?”

At the Paris Olympics, Daiya Seto, who was expected to win medals in the men’s 200m and 400m individual medleys, along with Tōru Honda in the men’s 200m butterfly, were all eliminated. The only medal Japan secured was a silver in the men’s 400m individual medley by Tomoyuki Matsushita, marking the worst result since the 21st century.

Even in the previous Tokyo Olympics, Japan ended with two gold medals and one silver, which was considered an unsatisfactory result. The Japan Swimming Federation began working on a complete overhaul of its organization. At the end of September, Takayuki Umehara, the chair of the swimming committee, resigned before his term ended in June next year, and on December 6th, Toshihiro Kurasawa was appointed as the acting chair.

“Japan won the most medals in history at the Paris Olympics, but swimming suffered a major defeat. With the goal of reviving ‘Swimming Japan’ before the next Los Angeles Olympics, the scandal involving Seto came out in the weekly magazine. It’s no surprise that swimming industry insiders are furious,” said a sports paper desk.

Taking junior swimmers with him to the nightlife

During the first affair scandal in 2020, Daiya Seto was abandoned by most of his sponsors, and about three weeks after the reports, the Japan Swimming Federation held an executive council meeting and imposed a suspension from activities for the remainder of the year. There are now concerns that an even harsher punishment could be forthcoming.

“Seto has always held the belief that those who deliver results are worthy of respect, regardless of the process. While his bold mental attitude is admirable in some ways, his misconduct could have a negative influence on other athletes. Bunshun reported that he was leading junior swimmers out to the nightlife districts.

Some members of the federation are furious, and calls for his ‘expulsion from the national team’ are beginning to surface. Last time, within a month of the report, an ethics committee was convened and a decision was made. Given the strong criticism from the association, it is possible that some form of punishment will be handed down as early as next month,” said the earlier desk.

Currently, Seto is in divorce negotiations with Yuka Mabuchi. There is said to be a disagreement over the custody of their two children.

“Seto and his mother are reportedly claiming custody. Mabuchi can’t back down on this. It would be ideal if they could reach a compromise on the conditions.” said a sports paper reporter.

Seto is focusing on the World Short Course Championships in Budapest, Hungary, in December. If he wins the 400m individual medley, he will achieve an unprecedented seven consecutive victories.

“His motivation is high,” said a swimming industry insider.

The question remains whether he will show his steel-like mentality once again, or if something else will unfold.