Japan's marathon record holder Suguru Osako recently posted a series of messages on his personal social media.
Earlier he publicly voiced support for his junior Keita Sato, who has gone to the United States to start a professional career. He also responded to the debate over "who deserves to be called a professional runner," arguing that professional status shouldn't be determined by outsiders' labels and judgments.
On July 29, Osako posted another long message,lamenting that Japanese society is increasingly relying on rules rather than mutual understanding between people to maintain order.
At the end of the post, he wrote:“"Japan is really getting more and more suffocating. I'm going to train in Kenya!"”The comment revealed his fatigue with the current state of Japanese society.
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Backing Keita Sato, condemning keyboard warriors
Dubbed the "Komazawa Monster," Keita Sato had strong performances in the Hakone Ekiden. After graduating he confirmed he would head overseas to pursue a professional career, switching to Nike to join its Swoosh Track Club to train and focus on the track. The decision sparked much discussion at the time, with some even questioning it.
In an interview with Sports Graphic Number, Sato also mentioned that he asked Osako for advice during a meal they shared.
"He told me to choose a place where I can become stronger—truly stronger. Ultimately, what's most important for an athlete is the ability to get better. So he told me to make achieving that goal my top priority."
Osako also mentioned that he had previously shared a meal with Sato and had an in-depth conversation about his future development. He publicly expressed his support for the junior:"Let's cheer together for Keita, who's working hard to prove his choice."
In response to online criticism of Sato's professional choice, Osako's reply was very direct. He said,"I hope those who like to boss others around will stop making boring and unnecessary comments, and stop overly interfering in athletes' own decisions."
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Anyone can be a professional runner
Osako's unusually blunt response may have been prompted by some netizens questioning whether Sato "is even qualified to be called a professional runner." He later posted separately to address the controversy, arguing that judging an athlete by so‑called status and titles is meaningless.
He wrote:"'Professional runner' is, at its core, a self‑definition—anyone can call themselves that, and the title itself doesn't mean anything."
Looking back on 大迫杰's career, he once made a similar choice. In 2015 he left Japan’s traditional corporate track team system to train and develop in the United States. That decision at the time was also not understood by everyone and drew considerable questioning and criticism.
Perhaps because he went through similar circumstances, 大迫杰 can better understand the pressure 佐藤圭汰 is facing now. As a senior who has walked this path, he has chosen to speak out publicly and support his junior's decision.
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A society that governs people by rules rather than by shared norms is suffocating.
Yoyogi Park has long been a common training spot for Tokyo runners. In the past, runners and pedestrians shared paths and gave each other space, relying largely on mutual courtesy. Many running groups also remind members not to run side-by-side and block the path, to be mindful of pedestrians when stopping, and to avoid impacting other path users whenever possible.
But this time the park authority ultimately chose to put up signs explicitly banning running on certain sections. That moved 大迫杰 to comment:Problems that could once be resolved through runners’ self-discipline and mutual consideration now have to be controlled by written, enforced rules — it's a shame.
[End-of-article interaction]
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Text / Editor: Sports Notes / JOJO
Image source: Paoye Dabaozha / Internet
Visual: Max
