He'd
prefer enlightenment to a medal, but when Japan's horse-riding Buddhist
monk Kenki Sato saddles up for London 2012, he'll be representing one
of the Olympics' more unusual families.
Shaven-headed
Sato, who starts each day with a morning prayer, is following his
younger brother Eiken, who also trained as a priest and rode at the
Beijing Games. His sister, Tae, 24, is a five-time national showjumping
champion.
And
his father, Shodo, who heads a 460-year-old temple and adjacent
horse-riding club, was a member of Japan's equestrian team before the
1980 Games in Moscow -- only to have his Olympic dream dashed when Japan
boycotted.
Kenki
Sato is on extended leave from the Myoshoji temple in mountains near
Nagano, where his father is the 25th master, to train for London where
he will compete in eventing, which combines dressage, cross-country and
showjumping.
Among
his team-mates is Hiroshi Hoketsu, 71, the oldest competitor in any
sport at Beijing 2008, who is entered in the separate dressage category.
They
are not strongly tipped to end Japan's 80-year wait for a second
equestrian medal, following Baron Takeichi Nishi's showjumping gold of
1932. But Sato said the experience would have spiritual value.
I
may learn something as a human being when I encounter various people
with different religions and languages abroad, says the diminutive Sato,
who turns 28 on Wednesday. I want to feed it back into my path to
Buddhist enlightenment.
Four
years ago, while his brother competed at the last Olympics, Sato was
serving a year's apprenticeship for the priesthood, secluded in a
prestigious Zen temple.
My old master secretly showed me a newspaper clipping about my younger brother. I was so happy I shed tears, he remembers.
Somewhere
in my mind, I didn't want to be outdone by my brother. This turned into
enormous energy for me to continue as a sportsman.
In 2010, Sato claimed team and individual eventing golds at the Asian Games and finished 35th at the world championships.
His
journey to London began at the age of seven, when he started training
for competition under his father. I think it was largely because my
father could not become an Olympian, he admits.
Sato
senior, 61, paired the disparate worlds of Buddhism and equestrianism
after growing up around horses in the mountains of Nagano, where they
were still the main mode of transport when he was a child.
He
practised horsemanship while attending a Buddhist university in Tokyo
and opened an equestrian park next to the temple in 1979. The facility's
clubhouse overlooks the riding ground from a hillside dotted with
tombstones.
When
his children were young, he would carry them around on horseback. Asked
about his disappointment of 1980, when Japan joined a boycott over the
Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, the elder Sato is philosophical.
I don't dwell on the past, he says softly. It was all due to the circumstances of the times.
His
son, who stands just 163cm (5ft 4in) tall, has been training with
reigning world and European eventing champion Michael Jung at a stable
near Stuttgart.
But
a vital part of his preparation is meditation, especially at home
before competition. When I cross my legs, it somewhat calms me and makes
me feel like going all over again, he says.
However, Sato does not rely on the power of prayer alone.
In principle, my sect doesn't recom
mend
reliance on others, he smiles. But for a moment when the competition is
over, I think it is very important to give thanks to my horse, groom
and family.
From: AFP
2012-07-1
2012-07-1
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