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World's No 1 cruises to double gold

By Tang Zhe (China Daily)
Updated: 2010-12-20 07:58

Japan's Shingo Kunieda hits a return to compatriot Saida Satoshi in the final of the wheelchair men's tennis final at the Guangzhou Asian Para Games on Saturday. Kunieda won the gold. [Photo/Xinhua]

 

Japanese star spurred to take up sport by his mother

GUANGZHOU - Shingo Kunieda was undoubtedly the most popular player on the court, but most of his supporters didn't realize that the gentleman playing so handsomely in front of them has been the world's No 1 wheelchair tennis player for the past four years.

The 26-year-old Beijing Paralympic gold medalist, who in Guangzhou kept intact a winning streak of more than 100 games, found no real opposition at the Asian Para Games and claimed the men's singles and doubles titles.

The tennis center near Kunieda's boyhood house in greater Tokyo started a wheelchair program 20 years ago. When the 11-year-old's mother asked him to get some exercise by playing tennis, Kunieda agreed and from the day he picked up a racquet, tennis began to change his life.

"My mother loves tennis and she hoped I'd be brave enough to take it up," Kunieda said. "Nobody wants to lose his legs, but it's a fact that I had to face. So I worked hard to prove myself by playing tennis.

"In fact, all the wheelchair sports are thriving around the world, and Japan is good at promoting sports for paralyzed people, so we can get the opportunity to play."

As a professional, Kunieda competes in various tournaments, including the four Grand Slams, just like the able-bodied professionals. After the Asian Para Games he will play in the Australian Wheelchair Tennis Open in Melbourne, where he has won the singles title the past four years and the doubles the past five.

As a Grand Slam champion, Kunieda's favorite tennis star is Roger Federer, and he still gets excited when he recalls his short encounter with his idol.

"He's a gentleman and he plays beautiful tennis," said Kunieda, who often watches Federer's matches live while on tour.

China Daily