Gymnastics-I almost lost faith, says Hashimoto after snatching team gold
Paris 2024 Olympics – Artistic Gymnastics – Men’s Team Victory Ceremony – Bercy Arena, Paris, France – July 29, 2024. Gold medallist Daiki Hashimoto of Japan poses for a picture as he celebrates with his medal REUTERS/Paul Childs Purchase Licensing Rights
Japan’s reigning Olympic all-around gymnastics champion Daiki Hashimoto had been on an emotional roller-coaster for months.
Back in May, injury had forced him to suddenly pull out of the NHK Trophy – the sport’s marquee tournament in Japan – that he hoped would be his chance to dress-rehearse his routines ahead of the Paris Games.
Still nursing a far-from-healed finger injury, he joined other Olympic-bound athletes at the team’s training camp even though he wondered whether he would be able to lead the five-man team to the gold medal that his nation expected.
“To be honest, I was starting to lose confidence,” Hashimoto told reporters on Monday. “When the camp ended, I still couldn’t visualise how I was going to win that gold.”
That sense of doubt seemed to have disappeared two days ago when Hashimoto stepped into the Bercy Arena in Paris, beaming and waving to the adoring fans.
But the confidence was short-lived.
On the high bar, Hashimoto botched his dismount by landing on his hands and feet, dashing his chance of reaching the final to defend the title in the apparatus.
“I became a drag on the team and that felt really heavy again,” he said.
Japan had been hoping to top the qualifying standings to underline their title credentials but they had to settle for second place behind China.
Through the difficult moments, it was his teammates’ unwavering determination and constant encouragement that carried him through, Hashimoto said.
“Every time I opened the doors to the training grounds, all of them would talk about how they wanted to win the gold medal. Seeing that, I really felt from the bottom of my heart that I wanted to fight for this team.”
On Monday, with that medal at stake, Hashimoto needed one more lift from his teammates.
In an error that drew a collective gasp from the arena, Hashimoto fell off the pommel horse, setting Japan back against a formidable Chinese side. In fact Hashimoto’s lowly score of 13.100 left his country trailing in fifth place at the halfway point of the final.
“The moment I fell I thought to myself, ‘Oh no, we’re going to lose the gold again because of me’,” said Hashimoto, who was part of the Japanese team that finished second behind Russia at the Tokyo Games.
