(born March 10, 1967, in

Narashino is a Cities of Japan, city located in Chiba Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 175,292 in 81,985 households and a population density of 8400 persons per km2. The total area of the city is Geography Narashino is loca ...

, Chiba) is a retired Japanese

backstroke Backstroke or back crawl is one of the four Swimming (sport), swimming styles used in competitive events regulated by FINA, and the only one of these styles swum on the back. This swimming style has the advantage of easy breathing, but the disa ...

swimmer Swimming is an individual or team racing sport that requires the use of one's entire body to move through water. The sport takes place in pools or open water (e.g., in a sea or lake). Competitive swimming is one of the most popular Olympic ...

. He won a gold medal at the

1988 Summer Olympics The 1988 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIV Olympiad () and officially branded as Seoul 1988 (), were an international multi-sport event held from 17 September to 2 October 1988 in Seoul, South Korea. 159 nations were represe ...

Seoul Seoul, officially Seoul Special Metropolitan City, is the capital city, capital and largest city of South Korea. The broader Seoul Metropolitan Area, encompassing Seoul, Gyeonggi Province and Incheon, emerged as the world's List of cities b ...

. Japan's First Chief Commissioner of Sports Agency (2015 - 2020). Chair of Japan Swimming Federation (2013 - 2015, 2021 - ). Vice President of Asia Aquatics (2016 - ). Bureau Member of

World Aquatics World Aquatics, formerly known as FINA (; ), is the international federation recognised by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) for administering international competitions in List of water sports, water sports. It is one of several interna ...

(2017 - ). Professor and Associate Dean, Faculty of Health and Sports Science at Juntendo University.

Swimming

Suzuki developed the swimming technique called underwater dolphin kick or what is known as the Berkoff Blastoff in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. This style in backstroke swimming was invented by either

David Berkoff David "Dave" Charles Berkoff (born November 30, 1966) is an American former competition Hall of Fame swimmer, Olympic champion, and former world record-holder in two events. Berkoff was a backstroke specialist who won a total of four medals dur ...

or Jesse Vasallo. However, it was Suzuki who finally developed the skill, allowing him to swim 25 meters underwater at the

1984 Summer Olympics The 1984 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXIII Olympiad and commonly known as Los Angeles 1984) were an international multi-sport event held from July 28 to August 12, 1984, in Los Angeles, California, United States. It marked the ...

held in

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

. Four years later, he won the gold medal in the 100-meter backstroke at the 1988 Seoul Olympics where Berkoff also competed.

Career

In 2013, Daichi was the head of the Japan Swimming Federation. On September 5, 2015, it was confirmed that he would take up a new position as head of Japan's new national sports agency, which was launched on October 1, 2015. The new organization, which is called Japan Sports Agency, is an ''Incorporated Administrative Agency'' or similar of the

Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology The , also known as MEXT, is one of the eleven ministries of Japan that compose part of the executive branch of the government of Japan. History The Meiji period, Meiji government created the first Ministry of Education in 1871. In January 2001 ...

. Its primary role is coordinating a wide range of sports-related functions and projects carried out by various government ministries. Specifically, the 121-person agency is tasked to improve Japan's athletic performance in the

2020 Summer Olympics The officially the and officially branded as were an international multi-sport event that was held from 23 July to 8 August 2021 in Tokyo, Japan, with some of the preliminary sporting events beginning on 21 July 2021. Tokyo ...

Tokyo Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital of Japan, capital and List of cities in Japan, most populous city in Japan. With a population of over 14 million in the city proper in 2023, it is List of largest cities, one of the most ...

. In October 2016, he became vice president of Asia Aquatics. In July 2017, he was elected Bureau Member of the

. On April 5, 2021, The

International Swimming Hall of Fame The International Swimming Hall of Fame and Museum (ISHOF) is a history museum and hall of fame, located at One Hall of Fame Drive, Fort Lauderdale, Florida, United States, operated by private interests and serving as the central point for the stu ...

(ISHOF) announced that Daichi Suzuki would be inducted into the ISHOF Class of 2021 as an "Honor Swimmer". In fact, Daichi Suzuki was announced by ISHOF that he would have been inducted into the ISHOF Class of 2020 in 2019, but due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the 2020 induction was postponed to 2021. On May 9, 2023, Asian University Sports Federation selected Daichi Suzuki as one of the Assessors. On November 18, 2023, the

International University Sports Federation The International University Sports Federation (FISU; ) is responsible for the organization and governance of worldwide sports competitions for student-athletes between the ages of 17 and 25. It was founded in 1949 as the world governing body of ...

selected Daichi Suzuki as one of the FISU Executive Committee Members.

Educational background

*Ph.D in medicine,

Juntendo University is a private university in Bunkyo, Tokyo, Japan. Its headquarters are on its campus in Bunkyo, for the School of Medicine and in Inzai, Chiba, for the School of Health and Sports Science. The university was established in 1946, although it can ...

References

*
Hawaii Swim Forum – Race Strategy
*

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Suzuki, Daichi 1967 births Living people People from Narashino Japanese male backstroke swimmers Olympic swimmers for Japan Swimmers at the 1984 Summer Olympics Swimmers at the 1988 Summer Olympics Olympic gold medalists for Japan Asian Games medalists in swimming Swimmers at the 1986 Asian Games Sportspeople from Chiba Prefecture Olympic gold medalists in swimming Asian Games gold medalists for Japan Asian Games swimmers for Japan Medalists at the 1986 Asian Games Summer World University Games medalists in swimming FISU World University Games gold medalists for Japan Medalists at the 1988 Summer Olympics Japanese sportsperson-politicians Medalists at the 1987 Summer Universiade 20th-century Japanese sportsmen 21st-century Japanese sportsmen 21st-century Japanese educators Presidents of the Japan Swimming Federation