Tokyo( Japan) National wheelchair basketball player, CHOKAI Renshi, is honing his skills to do his team and his home nation proud at the Paralympic Games in Tokyo 2021.
After taking up wheelchair basketball in his first year of junior high school, CHOKAI Renshi was selected to the wheelchair basketball national team and made his Paralympic debut at Rio 2016 Games, as the youngest player in the team. Japan placed ninth at the Rio Games.
Now, the Japanese player has been selected to represent the host nation at the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games, where he hopes to make a key contribution to the team and earn a medal for his country.
Honing skills on court
Born in Nagasaki Prefecture, Chokai was born with a congenital impairment in both lower limbs and hands. His lower legs were amputated at the age of three and he has used prosthetics ever since. At junior high school, he joined the tennis team and caught the attention of the coach of the women’s basketball team. The coach, who was also involved in men’s wheelchair basketball, asked if he wanted to try the sport. Chokai took up the opportunity and started playing competitively at a club in Sasebo City.
He admits it took him a while to get used to a sports wheelchair. Unlike his usual one, it was harder to control as it did not have brakes – this is for speed and making turns: “The wheelchairs are very manoeuvrable, so it was more difficult to get a feel for them,” he said.
As well as improving his ball passes and shots, Chokai focussed on training in chair skills. Part of this was to move in and out of a series of cones placed at equal intervals on court to practice fine control. With the team, he also completed laps of the court for 20 minutes, changing direction every five minutes.
“We had no breaks and pedalled less when we got tired and couldn’t go straight. I remember it was really hard from the middle of the race,” he said.
At first he lagged behind other riders, but gradually he was able to get alongside and overtake them, which showed how much he had progressed.
Moving in offence and defence
Chokai plays mainly as a guard who sets up the game and controls the ball. As a key player in the team with a position that allows him to both be on the attack and defend, there are certain things he must consider in order to win. When the team is in the offence, Chokai has to think fast about the most likely way to score – whether to shoot the ball or to pass it to the taller players.
In defence, he makes it a rule to align himself with the team’s plan and identifying who the skilled opponent shooters are and stopping them from making shots. If a good shooter holds the ball, you must put pressure on him and try to keep him out of the goal. The offensive players will also try to break down their defense, which must be taken care of additionally.
“The basic strategy is to cover gaps on the court whenever they appear,” he said.
One of the most important skills in attack and defence is having a broad understanding of the game.
“A narrow vision will directly trigger errors,” Chokai says.
The first step is to learn the principles of wheelchair basketball and then accumulate practical experience, as Chokai learned in the process.
“In a competition, you can’t succeed with simple moves. By keeping an eye on the opposition’s attempts, I was able to develop an instinct for predicting ball passes.”
There are moments in the game when he gets excited. “When I count my successful shots whilst also being fouled, or when I make a beautiful pass with a fast attack under the net, transitioning quickly from defence to offence, I tell myself, ‘Yes!’.”
He hopes to lead the team to victory at the Paralympics in front of his home nation with a series of convincing performances.
Keen to erase Rio setback
Chokai was the youngest member of the team in Rio 2016 and although he was nervous in his Paralympic debut, the team finished in ninth place among the world’s top ranking teams.
I realised that I didn’t have the skills to compete on the world stage and I was frustrated that I couldn’t compete with the best players in the world,” he says.
The stage is now set for him to assuage his disappointment. He has been selected for the national team at Tokyo 2020 and he wants to win a medal for his country. What he has honed in preparation for the big occasion is his ability to go one-on-one and score goals on his own.
I want people to see how I’ve changed because my value as a player is that I can assist and make chances in addition to my defence, which is my forte.”
Raised in a family of basketball players, with both his parents and older brother playing the game, Chokai has always loved the sport and playing it with his family.
“Basketball is the first sport I’ve enjoyed as a competitive player. I hope to win a medal and repay my family who have guided me to the sport, as well as many others who have supported me.”
With appreciation, Chokai is working hard to gain a spot on the court at the Tokyo 2020 Games – he is among 17 players who have been selected for the squad.
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