Olympic and Paralympic athletes "I hate Ichiro."

Toyota Motor Corporation is running its "WHAT WOWS YOU." project for the Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games.

The company aims to become an enterprise that moves the hearts of people worldwide, referring to this emotional response as "WOW."

This time, coinciding with the Rio Games, Toyota produced a new TV commercial featuring Major League Baseball star Ichiro Suzuki, Rio Olympic Japanese representative Seito Yamamoto (pole vault), and Japanese Paralympic representatives Mei Ichinose (swimming), Hajime Ashida (long jump), and Takuya Miki (wheelchair tennis). The commercial began airing on August 5.

The "WOW I Hate Ichiro" edition depicts Ichiro training with single-minded dedication alongside scenes of each athlete sweating through their practice.

Overlaid on this, the narration begins: "I hate Ichiro." It continues: "Because when I see him, the word 'limit' sounds like an excuse," "Because I can't lie to myself anymore," "Because I feel like I have to enjoy even the effort," "Because every headwind looks like an opportunity." The athletes' feelings of respect for the great Ichiro are condensed into the line "I hate Ichiro."

It concludes with the title: "But we're supposed to be the same." "Now, let's move the world."
When we see the relentless effort hidden behind the dazzling stage, the world feels WOW.
Through Ichiro and four other athletes, it conveys how sports give us countless WOW moments and the profound beauty of walking one path while honing oneself.

Project Site: http://toyota.jp/wows/

The project will collect messages of support for the "TEAM TOYOTA ATHLETES" competing in Rio from August 6th on its website ( http://toyota.jp/wows/special/sports/rio/ ). Messages will be featured on the site and delivered to the athletes.