It's really nice to be supported

RRC member interview

Text: Shun Sato

Sayaka Matsumoto, Team C (Goal: Full marathon sub 4 hours 00 minutes), was selected as the 6th round MVP

Achieved sub-4 time in Kanazawa

When I achieved a sub-4 time (3 hours 52 minutes 58 seconds) at the Kanazawa Marathon, I thought, "Finally!" (laughs).

Usually, I would start about two months before the race and decide, "Okay, let's run." But with that attitude, I never managed to achieve a sub-4 time, so I joined RETO.

I don't like running alone

I've never been good at running alone (laughs bitterly). Before I ran in Kanazawa, I was only running about 100 kilometers a month, which was definitely not enough. Maybe that's why I was feeling really tough around the 28km mark in Kanazawa, and I was running while thinking about when I should start walking. But after eating curry and Japanese sweets at the aid station, I felt really energized and was able to run with a bit more ease in the second half.

RETO supports Brazil tour

I've been with RETO since my fifth term, and it has had a big impact on my life. I recently went to Brazil to represent Japan in frescoball, but fresco is a minor sport, and I wasn't playing it to get support from anyone. But I was really grateful for the support that RETO provided in the form of crowdfunding, and I really felt the gratitude for the support they gave me. It made me realize once again what a great team they are.

Yohei is my rival

Yohei (Nariie) also plays a big role in my life. We joined RETO at the same time, but before we joined, we had met at other running events and were familiar with each other, and our personal best times were similar, so I was very conscious of him. At the time, my times were better than his, but now he's far ahead of me, so I feel I need to work hard too. In that sense, Yohei is a good rival and also someone I look up to.

Next target: sub-3.5

I thought I might burn out after achieving one of my goals: a sub-4 marathon, but that wasn't the case at all (laughs). The members of RETO are constantly setting personal bests, so I didn't want to set an easy goal for myself, and so I set sub-3.5 as my target. To achieve that, it's all about the amount of training. Up until now, no matter how hard I tried, I could only manage about 150km a month, but I'm the type of person who won't be satisfied until I achieve a goal once I set it, so I'd like to train hard so that I don't lose to Yohei.