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The story
The women’s 100m butterfly final at the Asian Games, currently underway in Aichi and Nagoya, took place on September 23. Japanese record holder Rikako Ikee (26) finished 5th with a time of 58.25 seconds, falling short of what would have been her 11th career medal. China’s Yu Yiting (21) won the event in 56.41 seconds, while Nagisa Ikemoto (24) placed 6th in 58.62. On 5ch, rather than focusing on the race result itself, posters mostly brought up Ikee’s comeback from leukemia, her past remarks, and her reported ties to “hand-healing” (a faith-healing practice), making for a thread split between support and criticism.
9/23 (Wed) 17:07
20th Asian Games Aichi-Nagoya, Swimming (Sept. 23, Tokyo Aquatics Centre)
The women’s 100m butterfly final was held, with Japanese record holder Rikako Ikee (26, Yokohama Rubber/Renaissance Sports Club) finishing 5th in 58.25 seconds, missing out on what would have been her 11th medal. Nagisa Ikemoto (24, Miki House/TASC) took 6th place in 58.62. China’s Yu Yiting (21) won gold with a time of 56.41, claiming her first title in the event.
Source: news.yahoo.co.jp / Original article here
What people said
Which way do you mean that?
At least wait until she actually wins a medal before writing an article.
(´・ω・`)
The original line's from School Wars, lol (a Japanese drama)
Yasuo Miyata: "Don't copy me!" (a line from School Wars)
Had no idea she was still competing.
Good for her, really pushing through!
so she'll probably keep going.
Even without the illness, this was coming eventually.
No, however you look at it the illness was the real blow
Just making it back alive from a disease that could easily have killed her is a miracle.
She was always the early-bloomer type — winning national titles back in junior high.
Her current times aren't much different from right after she recovered, so there's no question she's past her peak.
funny how that's boomeranged right back at her.
but when it comes to swimmers the average person can actually name, it's really just Kitajima and her.
A generation back you'd have had Suzu Chiba too.
She got attention as "the person who beat leukemia," not for her competitive results.
Either she worked incredibly hard,
or the rest of the field is just hopelessly weak.
The fact that Ikee still holds around ten Japanese records by herself says everything about how weak everyone else is.
Background and points of debate
Rikako Ikee was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia in 2019 and underwent a long period of treatment; her return to the national team for the 2021 Tokyo Olympics was widely reported at the time. This Asian Games appearance shows she’s still competing near the top internationally after her recovery, but her time of 58.25 seconds falls well short of her career-best from her prime, and the thread split between sober takes (“she’s no longer at world level,” “she’s past her physical peak”) and defenders arguing that “just getting this far back after such a serious illness is enough.” Some posts made definitive claims about the occupations of Ikee’s family members or ties to specific companies, but none of these were substantiated within the thread and should not be taken as confirmed fact. Criticism of her past remarks does draw on things she has actually said publicly, but it’s worth noting that judging her current competitive results is a separate question from that.
*This article is compiled from excerpts and a summary of the 5ch (Entertainment & Sports News+) thread “[Asian Games] Rikako Ikee finishes 5th in her first event of the Games, the women’s 100m butterfly, saying “I’m frustrated” — no medal for the first time in two Games.”
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