By Swimming World Japanese correspondent Hideki Mochizuki
TOKYO, Japan, June 23. AS alluded to earlier this week, Daichi Suzuki has been named the president of the Japanese Swimming Federation.
The Olympic gold medalist in the 1988 Seoul Olympics in the men's 100-meter backstroke, Suzuki picked up the presidency after being approved by the Board of Directors. He will serve an initial two-year term, and at 46 years old is the youngest leader in the history of Japanese Swimming.
“I feel that I am getting into a big role,” Suzuki said. “I will give my best contribution to the world of swimming.”
The move is a jump up from Suzuki's initial board member responsibilities that began in 2009, and recently involved a move up to the executive director role in 2011. He also was a board member of the 2016 Tokyo Bid Committee.
Kazuo Sano, 72, who was term limited due to an age limit on the position in Japan, will now move on to become executive director of Japan, and will continue to represent Japan within the FINA ranks.