“I don’t think of it as pressure,” the record six-time all-around world champion told The Japan Times. “I don’t think about what will happen if I make a mistake — I think about how the team will benefit if I’m successful.
Uchimura has been named team captain in what will be his third Olympics, and Tanaka has noticed a change in his teammate.
“He has more conversations with everyone now,” said the 26-year-old Tanaka, who was part of the Japan team that claimed silver in London four years ago along with Uchimura, Kato, Yamamuro and Kazuhito Tanaka. …
“We start on the pommel horse, and if we’re successful we can ride the momentum for the rest of the competition,” he said. “That’s the apparatus that’s easiest to fall off, so if we can do well it will help us to relax as a team. …
According to Uchimura, the timing of the preliminary rounds could also give Japan problems.
“The competition starts at 10 a.m., which is early,” he said. …
A few clips from a recent mock meet.
Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.
