Race Walking - Image Shiritori Started (#82)

(#81) Sen-sen Kyōkyō (trembling with fear) → 'Kyō' → Race Walking

"Well, you know... race walking is super hard, but it looks so plain."

"Yeah, exactly. That's why you have to make the costume flashy to stand out☆"

"But if we stand together like this, don't you think people will say we look like Tetsu & Tomo? (lol)"

"......(・_・)"

Race walking is an incredibly tough sport. At first glance,

"No, they're just walking fast, aren't they?"

That might be how it looks. But if you actually try it, you'll realize it's much harder than it appears.

The key to race walking lies in two types of penalties.

1. Loss of Contact

In race walking, one foot must always be in contact with the ground. If both feet are off the ground at the same time, a "
Loss of Contact" penalty is called.

2. Bent Knee

In race walking, the knee must be straightened from the moment the front foot touches the ground until it is in a vertical position. If it is bent, a "Bent Knee" penalty is called.

Well, regarding the first one, Loss of Contact, I feel like it's basically an extension of a careless mistake (this is just an amateur's opinion). It feels like the kind of mistake you make when you have too much energy at the start, or when you're in the heat of a close race toward the end.

The problem is the second one, Bent Knee. The unique step of race walking, where you walk with your front leg straight, might feel awkward at first, but I think you can get used to it without too much trouble.

However, as the race progresses, fatigue sets in, and lactic acid builds up in your leg muscles, you realize just how exhausting it is to move your body forward while keeping your front leg straight ( ﾟДﾟ)! It's so tough that for a moment, you might even think that Murakami from Fruit Punch, the 'Knee God,' is actually an amazing guy.

Strangely enough, in regular track events, whether it's 5000m, 10000m, or a marathon, if you get tired, you can "slow down to a walk", but you can't do that in race walking. That's because you basically can't ease up on that unique race walking style. In other words, race walkers must maintain that grueling movement from start to finish to reach the goal. Personally, I feel that race walking is closer to ascetic training than a sport.

Personally, if I were forced to choose between a 20km race walk and a full marathon, I would choose the full marathon without hesitation. I'm a marathon amateur who has only ever run 10km at a high school marathon event, but if there were no time limit, I could imagine myself finishing a full marathon. However, if someone told me to walk 5km in a race walk, I would surrender completely, saying, 'I'm sorry, please spare me, I'll turn over a new leaf and do anything.' And 20km? There's a limit to how much of a punishment game that is. It makes you want to ask, 'What kind of evil deeds did you commit in your past life?'

That's how tough the world of race walking is. Yet, as the caption for this image suggests, it certainly looks plain from the outside (^^ゞ

Compared to the 100m dash, where people compete to be the fastest on earth and fight in a world of sub-hundredths of a second,
or the marathon, where they run with all their might for as long as two hours,

these kinds of events inevitably end up looking a bit plain.

Even though they are doing something incredibly grueling, it looks plain, lol.
I even feel a sense of indignation, wondering how there can be such an unrewarding sport.

……But, at the end of the day, race walking really is plain, isn't it (T＿T)

◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆

Since it's sad, I've decided to change the subject (￣∀￣).
Tetsu & Tomo appear in the caption of the joke image. I think there are few people who don't know them, but just in case, here are "Tetsu & Tomo".

They are a comedy duo who have been asking the world "Why is that?" for 20 years now.

Personally, I like the guitar intro before they start their routine the best, lol.

Well, while we're at it, today's song. I suppose today's keyword is "walk".

The second song of the week is Psycho le Cému with "Omoide Aruki (Memory Walk)".

Yeah, this band is all about the music video (lol).
For this 4th single, it seems they spent a lot of money and time on cosplay, with a "Journey to the West" concept (￣∀￣)

……Even so, though it was never intended, after touching on the grueling nature of race walking and the sadness of its plain appearance that doesn't match the effort, listening to this song makes the sadness stand out more than the gentleness of the ballad……(^^ゞ

No, race walking actually has a certain number of participants, and I'm sure there's a goodness and wonder unique to race walking that isn't just about it being grueling. ——Though I don't really know what that is, lol.

Besides, look, race walking has the men's 50km race walk, which is the event that boasts the longest distance among all Olympic sports (o^-')b♪

——Wait? Was the men's 50km race walk the last one at Tokyo 2021? (・_・)

Oops, it's already this late tonight. I'm not trying to dodge the question. I'm just shifting the topic.

With that said,
I hope tomorrow will be a day where as many people as possible
can walk step by step, cherishing each one, but never overdoing it 🚶‍♂️

■ Bonus

　This is the car before the current one in this image shiritori train (82nd car). If anyone was caught by the title "Sen-sen Kyō-kyō (Trembling with Fear)" and the joke image on the bottom right, wondering what it is, please feel free to take a look when you have some time.