In 2017, Abdul Hakim Sani Brown switched his base of training to Florida where he chose to go to college and where he trained alongside top-level athletes We wondered how his attitudes toward the sport and his personal values may have changed. When he signed a global partnership agreement with Toray Industries in April 2023, Sani Brown said he wanted to pursue activities that would help further the development of sports and athletics, especially for the next generation, and bring attention to social issues such as sustainability and diversity.. We asked Sani Brown about his new life in the Sunshine State, the training environment there, and his thoughts on competition and co-creation with Toray.
Be your natural self and make a steady effort.
Ace sprinter Sani Brown aims for the "Pursuit of the Ultimate Limits.”
The world-class training environment of his dreams
Q. How does practicing among world-class athletes inspire or influence you?
I am training with athletes who have won medals at world championships and am greatly influenced by their attitude towards competition. We also spend time together outside of practice, so I’m inspired by them all day, every day. It’s been six years since I came to Florida. I'm pushing myself harder than when I was in Japan and I'm better able to handle the practice workload. I've had a strong desire to go abroad since I was in high school, so I'm really glad I came to the United States.
Q. When you were in high school, what made you want to go abroad?
In my second year of high school I participated in my first World Athletics Championships. I competed against top-level players and realized that I needed and wanted to train on the world stage. I have a very curious personality, and I wondered what sort of training is done in countries with top-level athletes and what I could study at university. I decided that it was okay to fail and that I should just get started.
Q. Have there been any difficult times in your competitive life since your school days?
In the 2019 season, I participated in a tournament that lasted about two and a half months longer than usual, so it was a little hard on me physically. Then in 2020 I was injured and had to compete in the Tokyo Olympics without sufficient time to adjust. It was a tough time.
Q. How did you get through that difficult period?
I persisted. Then, at a competition in March 2022, I ran a time of about 10.1 seconds and felt that my body had healed. That tournament was held on a Saturday, and my coach told me that I was going to compete on Tuesday of that week. I traveled to Miami and did not have what I thought was adequate time to prepare, and I just ran without thinking. The result wasn't bad, so that made me feel mentally positive.
Your mental condition affects the outcome
Q. Tell us about your daily practice routine.
I don't know the day’s practice schedule until after the warm-up. We warm up, check our condition, and then the coach will give us instructions. Recently, my body has been a little tired from consecutive tournaments, so I have been recovering and gradually increasing the intensity of my practice.
Q. Is there any part of the practice routine that you are not good at?
I'm not good at interval running. Run, take a break, run again . . . it’s hard on my lungs, my head starts to hurt, and as I run out of oxygen the lactic acid accumulates in my legs and they start to feel heavy. Of course, practice isn't supposed to be just fun, and to be honest, every day I feel like I just don’t want to go. [smile] However, I am keenly aware from competing that it is steady daily effort that leads to a positive outcome during races, so I have been working hard to motivate myself. I often feel a little downhearted heading to the training ground, but once I start moving, I feel motivated.
Q. You finished seventh at the 2022 World Athletics Championships in Oregon, but you were not satisfied with the result.
That’s correct. In Oregon there was about an hour between the semifinals and the final. I went back to the dressing room, had a light massage and warmed up, and then it was time for the race., I didn't have enough time to prepare myself mentally. However, I experienced a tournament with short intervals, so the next time I’m faced with a similar situation it will be easier for me to prepare myself mentally and physically.
Q. The mindset you bring to the match also affects the outcome.
I think so. It's best for me to not overthink the match and be my natural self. When I’m really focused, I can't hear the music or the cheers. Even with so many people around, sometimes only the coach's voice reaches my ears. If I approach a race in that state, I’ll come away with a good result.
I'm less nervous in matches now. I played soccer as a child, so when I first switched to track and field, I sometimes felt the pressure. Soccer is a group sport, but in track and field, everything is on the individual. But lately, I've come to think that tournaments are the most enjoyable way to compete., When I’m on the big stage my “switch” turns on naturally.
An athlete’s “Pursuit of the Ultimate Limits”: Always striving to shorten running time by a tenth of a second
Q. In May April 2023, you signed a global partnership agreement with Toray. What is your view of this contract?
My previous sponsorships have all been focused on supporting my competitive life. This partnership agreement is about accomplishing something together with Toray, which I see as a major inspiration. It has helped me realize that I would like to try various things outside of competition.
Q. When you concluded the partnership with Toray, you said that the company’s guiding phrases of “Pursuit of the Ultimate Limits” and “Long-Term Continuity” are the very essence of track and field sprinting events. In what aspects do you feel an affinity with Toray’s corporate DNA?
Sprinting is a sport in which your performance is tied directly to your daily routine. Results are almost never spontaneous. They are earned over time after hard work and practice. Competition is even fiercer at the highest level, where athletes strive to shorten times by a tenth of a second. To run my best average, I practice repeatedly, always checking my form. In terms of increasing speed and pushing to the extreme, I think that sprinting is a competition in which an individual pursues the ultimate limits.
Q. What is the focus of your current pursuit?
One hundred meters seems like a short distance, but we divide that into sections to put together the race. My challenge at the moment is how to quickly reach top speed from the starting position. My coach has been telling me that I need more speed off the starting block., If I am able to accelerate solidly in that section, I should be able to run well through the second half.
Q. Another key phrase at Toray is “Long-Term Continuity.” You seem to be committed to the continuity of your daily practice. Why do you think you’ve been able to keep going?
Because I have a goal. Ever since I was in high school, I’ve had a strong desire to set a world record. I'm looking forward to seeing how far I can extend my record, how far I can go. That motivates me.
Promoting athletics and addressing environmental issues together with Toray
Q. You’ve recently been promoting the sport by holding track and field classes and talks for elementary school students. What sparked your interest in those activities?
The experience of competing without spectators at the Tokyo Olympics during the COVID crisis was a big incentive . Until then, I took for granted that I would be cheered on by the crowd, and when that disappeared, competing was really hard. I felt lonely during the match and I realized that having people watching and supporting the races makes me want to try harder. After the Olympics, I decided I wanted to leverage my position and do something positive and bring people together , so I arranged opportunities to interact with children.
Q. Why did you choose to work with children?
Outdoor activities were scaled back during the pandemic and the number of children playing sports declined. I wanted to create opportunities for children to move their bodies, enjoy sports, and learn about athletics. If children feel that athletics is fun, I think the number of athletes will increase in the future. At these events, the children sometimes asked me about specialized skills. They would ask surprising questions about things that I never thought about when I was a child. I am pleased to have this chance to learn about how children think, and I hope to increase these types of opportunities in the future.
I also hope to get involved with Toray’s Aozora Science School for children. I would like to work with Toray as a partner to help educate the next generation.
Q. When concluding the global partnership with Toray, you said that you would like to take part in other activities that contribute to society. Are there any areas that are of particular interest to you?
I am also interested in environmental issues. Toray has an initiative to recycle the PET bottles discarded at water stations at the Tokyo Marathon and use them to make material that is employed to manufacture shirts for the volunteers. I want to support environmental measures through sporting events such as this.
The stadiums in Japan are so clean. In Florida, even though there are trash cans around the stadiums, there is litter everywhere. It seems like such a shame to me, so when I see trash, I pick it up and throw it away. When competitions are held in other countries, Japanese spectators seen picking up garbage makes headlines! Maybe it's because of a deep-rooted consciousness of keeping public places clean. I want to be a messenger who conveys the positive aspects of the Japanese culture.
Q. Thank you. Is there anything else you would like to collaborate on with Toray?
I would like to work with PUMA and Toray, the companies that are currently providing me with athletic wear, and develop new comfortable, functional clothing. These are items that I wear almost every day of the year, so I would like to make use of Toray’s material development capabilities to create clothing that is as comfortable as possible. I am also interested in developing athletic wear and T-shirts from recycled materials. I think that by communicating that I am involved with thoughtful projects, it will be easier for other athletes to pursue similar endeavors.
