Japanese Swimming Federation Refutes Reports of Leadership Shakeup
The Japanese Swimming Federation has refuted a report published earlier Tuesday that it is replacing its director.
Olympic website Inside The Games, citing sources, reported that Takayuki Umehara will step down from his job as the head of Japanese swimming operations. The article was mirrored by reporting in Japan.
The JASF, however, posted a letter to its website refuting those reports (pdf), saying that “there has been no discussion or deliberation regarding the current chairman’s resignation or his term of office.” The letter also stressed that the federation would take into account more than just the Japanese national team’s performance at the recent Paris Olympics in plotting a direction forward toward the 2028 Games, soliciting input from coaches and athletes in what sounds like a broader review of procedures.
Japan is coming off a historical struggle in Paris, where it took home just one medal as a country. At the Tokyo Games in 2020, the country won only three swimming medals – double gold in the individual medleys for Yui Ohashi, silver in the 200 fly for Tomoru Honda – down from seven medals and two gold at the Rio Games and 11 medals in London. It’s the worst Japanese performance since the country was shut out at the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta.
The program is facing generational change in the pool. Daiya Seto is 30 and just finished his third Olympics. Ohashi is 28 years old; she didn’t qualify for the Olympics in the 400 IM and didn’t make the Olympic final in the 200 IM in Paris. Ryosuke Irie retired in April after falling short of qualification for a fifth Olympics. The lone medal in Paris is at least from an up-and-comer in Tomoyuki Matsushita, the 19-year-old earning silver in the 400 individual medley.
Umehara was named to the director position in 2021. He is due to serve a term until 2025. Umehara rose to prominence in Japanese swimming first as Seto’s coach.