Katsuya Hashimoto

Started: He began playing wheelchair rugby in 2016 while he was in grade eight of middle school. (FTV8 YouTube channel, 21 Oct 2018) Reason: His athletic talent was noticed by an official at a sports class he would attend once a week. "I was fascinated by the sport because it was cool and manly." (2020.yahoo.co.jp, 19 Mar 2019; FTV8 YouTube channel, 21 Oct 2018) Milestones: He became the youngest Japanese wheelchair rugby player to win a Paralympic medal in the sport when he was part of the team that claimed bronze at the 2020 Games at age 19 years and 112 days. (SportsDeskOnline, 01 Jul 2024) Awards: He was named Best 3.0 Class Player at the 2019 National Championship in Japan. (sankei.com, 14 Jan 2020)