NAGOYA - A local company from Aichi Prefecture, host of the Asian Para Games, has long produced sports wheelchairs tailored to Para athletes, with the continental multisport event in its backyard set to be a huge showcase.
Nissin Medical Industries Co. in Kitanagoya, founded in 1964 as a spring manufacturer, has thrived on creating custom-made equipment; building optimal chairs for each athlete based on their individual requests.
According to the company, its late founder Kazuo Matsunaga was inspired by the Tokyo Paralympics held that year and began manufacturing wheelchairs the following year. The drive accelerated after Hisashi Furukawa, 78, who won gold in wheelchair track and field at the 1968 Tel Aviv Paralympics, joined the company in 1973.
The company currently produces around 80,000 wheelchairs a year, mainly for older adults, with several hundred designed for sports including basketball, tennis and track and field. It adjusts wheel angles, seat heights and footrest space to suit each athlete's physique and disability, sometimes down to the millimeter.
Koki Miura, who is involved in development, said he never forgets seeing athletes taking their first ride in a finished wheelchair and looking "as lively as a fish in water."
"I want to listen to them carefully and respond to them the best I can," added the 31-year-old, who knows it is sometimes difficult to understand exactly what Para athletes are feeling, but crafts each chair to bring the best out of the recipients.
Japan's wheelchair basketball and track and field athletes at the games are big users of products from the company, which aims to utilize its technology to aid top-level performance on the world stage.
"Getting to support athletes behind the scenes is the greatest reward a manufacturer can ask for," said Yoshinori Ayaguchi, the 57-year-old head of the sales division. "I hope the games help raise awareness of para sports even further."
