its really inspiring and encouraging me to hear of our friend scaling great heights. let all of us also should achieve something or the other in our respective fields. join and serve to shape the society. regards raghu
On 1/16/09, shahnaz <[email protected]> wrote: > Blind Japanese makes a marathon effort > 16 Jan 2009, 0517 hrs IST, Kunaal Majgaonkar, TNN > MUMBAI: However cruel a handicap may be, it leaves you with choices. It can > limit, > but it can also liberate. There are those like 43-year-old Yuichi Takahashi > who dig > deep into their reserves to mock their disabilities. > A visually impaired athlete from Japan, Takahashi, who looks like Jackie > Chan with > goggles on, is in the city to run the Standard Chartered Mumbai marathon. > The ready > smile that springs to his face belies the years of struggle he has seen. > Life in Tokyo was beautiful until one day in 1996 when Takahashi suddenly > couldn't > see. "I was so devastated with what had happened that suicide seemed > liberating. > I realised that there would be many things that I couldn't do any more, > including > running, something I loved to do even as a child," he recalls. > But a chance hearing about the paralympic games on a television show put him > on the > path to redemption. "I decided to trade suicidal equipment for a pair of > shoes. I > took part in competitions, won a few and gained confidence," says the gold > medallist > of the T12 marathon at the paralympic games in Athens in 2004. > Race followed race and standing on podiums across the globe became a habit. > And then > something even more special happened. In 2002, at a local sports club he met > Yoshiko, > a pretty co-member who would end up running life's race with him. Yoshiko > was a pharmacist > who specialised in eye medication, apart from being a sports enthusiast. > "The connect > was instant," he smiles. > "My wife and my running shoes are the two things that make living my life > worthwhile. > The walking stick that people use with so much despair is in fact an object > that > has given me so much respect everywhere. That stick has no race, creed or > class and > I love the fact," he says. > This is Takahashi's first trip to Mumbai. "I hope to do the run in two hours > and > 30 minutes. And when I run at the paralympic games in London in 2012, I > would love > to run beside a visually impaired competitor from this city," he says. > During this > marathon, his wife will double as Takahashi's guide for the second half of > his 42 > km run (a 27-yearold friend of Takahashi will be his guide in the first > half). The > interview with TOI over, Takahashi bows to say goodbye—the traditional > Japanese movement > suggesting that life can bend you, but whether you break or not is up to > you. > > > > Check out the all-new Messenger 9.0! Go to > http://in.messenger.yahoo.com/ > > > > To unsubscribe send a message to [email protected] with > the subject unsubscribe. > > To change your subscription to digest mode or make any other changes, please > visit the list home page at > http://accessindia.org.in/mailman/listinfo/accessindia_accessindia.org.in To unsubscribe send a message to [email protected] with the subject unsubscribe. To change your subscription to digest mode or make any other changes, please visit the list home page at http://accessindia.org.in/mailman/listinfo/accessindia_accessindia.org.in
