[Numerous Masters World/Japan Records at Tokyo Olympic Venue!] The 38th All Japan Lifesaving Pool Championship Witnessed the Highest Level of Close Competition Amid Improving Swimming Skills of Japanese Lifesavers!
JLA held the 38th All Japan Lifesaving Pool Championship at Tokyo Aquatics Center on Feb 21-22, 2026. Multiple Japan and World records (Masters) were set, showcasing the rising swim capabilities of Japanese lifesavers.
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- 📰 Published: April 2, 2026 at 22:10
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The Japan Lifesaving Association (JLA, Minato-ku, Tokyo, President: Takuya Iritani) held the "38th All Japan Lifesaving Pool Championship" over two days on Saturday, February 21, and Sunday, February 22, 2026, at the Tokyo Aquatics Center (Koto-ku, Tokyo).
This was the second time the tournament was held at the Tokyo Aquatics Center (Koto-ku, Tokyo).
In the Obstacle Swim (200m) event, where the first medalists were decided, two youth athletes attracted attention. In the women's division, Karen Hashimoto from the Nippon Sport Science University Ebara High School LSC won her first championship. She also won the Surf Race, which tests swimming ability the most, at the "51st All Japan Lifesaving Championship" held at Katase Nishihama Beach (Fujisawa City, Kanagawa Prefecture) in October. She secured the victory by defeating the previous champion and university champions. Also, Shiori Kawabata, a third-year junior high school student belonging to Kitajima Aquatics, placed third. In the men's division, Keiji Hotta of Kujukuri LSC, the previous tournament champion, won. Natsuto Takada, a third-year junior high school student belonging to Kitajima Aquatics, placed third. Takada's time was fast enough to actively compete in the youth world championships.
The most exciting event of this tournament was the Manikin Carry (50m). Especially in the men's division, the Japan record has been rewritten several times within a year. In the preliminaries, Shun Nishiyama of Chigasaki SLSC set a new Japan record of 29.02 seconds, surpassing the Japan record he set a week before the tournament, and also established a new world record in the Masters 35-year-old category, passing the preliminaries in first place. Shuta Hara of Shirahama LSC, who passed the preliminaries in second place, also set a new Japan record of 29.36 seconds. In the finals, four athletes lined up capable of swimming in the 29-second range, identical to the Japan record, making it an unpredictable race. The winner was Hara, the previous tournament champion. Although he fell 0.05 seconds short of the time Nishiyama set in the preliminaries, he won with a personal best of 29.07 seconds. Such a heated and unpredictable race, where anyone could set a new Japan record, was extremely exciting, yielding a result that creates great anticipation for these top Japanese athletes leading lifesaving sports.
The fin event, Manikin Carry with Fins (100m),
This was the second time the tournament was held at the Tokyo Aquatics Center (Koto-ku, Tokyo).
In the Obstacle Swim (200m) event, where the first medalists were decided, two youth athletes attracted attention. In the women's division, Karen Hashimoto from the Nippon Sport Science University Ebara High School LSC won her first championship. She also won the Surf Race, which tests swimming ability the most, at the "51st All Japan Lifesaving Championship" held at Katase Nishihama Beach (Fujisawa City, Kanagawa Prefecture) in October. She secured the victory by defeating the previous champion and university champions. Also, Shiori Kawabata, a third-year junior high school student belonging to Kitajima Aquatics, placed third. In the men's division, Keiji Hotta of Kujukuri LSC, the previous tournament champion, won. Natsuto Takada, a third-year junior high school student belonging to Kitajima Aquatics, placed third. Takada's time was fast enough to actively compete in the youth world championships.
The most exciting event of this tournament was the Manikin Carry (50m). Especially in the men's division, the Japan record has been rewritten several times within a year. In the preliminaries, Shun Nishiyama of Chigasaki SLSC set a new Japan record of 29.02 seconds, surpassing the Japan record he set a week before the tournament, and also established a new world record in the Masters 35-year-old category, passing the preliminaries in first place. Shuta Hara of Shirahama LSC, who passed the preliminaries in second place, also set a new Japan record of 29.36 seconds. In the finals, four athletes lined up capable of swimming in the 29-second range, identical to the Japan record, making it an unpredictable race. The winner was Hara, the previous tournament champion. Although he fell 0.05 seconds short of the time Nishiyama set in the preliminaries, he won with a personal best of 29.07 seconds. Such a heated and unpredictable race, where anyone could set a new Japan record, was extremely exciting, yielding a result that creates great anticipation for these top Japanese athletes leading lifesaving sports.
The fin event, Manikin Carry with Fins (100m),