Diminutive Japan artistic swimmer vows to make big splash

Tiny Japanese artistic swimmer Ikoi Hirota made her international debut in March as a jumping specialist for the team acrobatic routine.At 150 centimeters tall, the 19-year-old has pledged to shine on the national team comprised of women who are around 20 cm taller than her and inspire other height-challenged athletes with her performances."I want to become an athlete who makes other shorter athletes think they can step up," Hirota said.The acrobatic routine has been added to the Olympic artistic swimming program for next year's Paris Games.National team head coach Takako Nakajima has high …READ FULL ARTICLE