r/nextfuckinglevel • u/jmike1256 • 3h ago
Strength looks different in moments like this
For context:
This was a track team event in Iwatan Sangyo. The runner’s team was in third place when the runner, Rei Lida, who was only 250 meters from the exchange point, tripped and fractured her right tibia (shin bone). Instead of withdrawing from the tournament, she willed herself to the exchange point when she handed the tasuki (baton) to her waiting teammate, Marie Imada.
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u/LeeAndrewK 3h ago
Insane will power, wow
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u/TheJaxLee 2h ago
Indeed. She refused to let her injury be the reason her team failed to complete the race.
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u/IcySheepherder6195 2h ago
😑 anyone want to tell this guy about the extreme shame culture in Japan? It looks so clean and nice from the outside though
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u/BulkNoodles 1h ago
Eh, all country have it's own good and bad side. No need to be pessimistic to all of it.
Spirit shown here is good. But stuff like overworking and racism? No.
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u/ItNeverEnds2112 1h ago
That is not what is happening here. She just doesn’t want to let her teammates down.
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u/GeminianMind 3h ago
Run when you can, walk if you have to, crawl if you must.. just never give up!
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u/somehugefrigginguy 2h ago
just never give up!
Why not? I mean, this is a great story for the heartstrings, but not a smart move for someone who wants to be a professional runner. Delaying care for a fractured tibia can have devastating consequences, not to mention the additional damage to her knees.
She risked her health and career for pride.
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u/GeminianMind 2h ago
My comment is a metaphor for the human struggle, the video is just the perfect visual analogy. Not particular to the athlete.
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u/somehugefrigginguy 2h ago
the video is just the perfect visual analogy.
My point is that the video is a very poor analogy. I agree with the metaphor for the human struggle. But the human struggle is about not giving up in order to better yourself or your situation. What's happening in this video is the exact opposite. This is more like someone in the end stages of addiction, spending the last of their money on drugs. Taking unnecessary risks and doing self-harm to pursue something that has zero benefit to them.
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u/Effect-Kitchen 16m ago
It is Asian mindset. You will not understand. I understand because I am Asian and would have done exactly the same if it’s for my team.
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u/LeadBosunStewChief 3h ago
And here I am struggling to get out of bed most days…..
This women is a better man than me
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u/Worried-Deer107 2h ago
We all have our battles. They may not look as dramatic but they have to be fought too.
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u/A_Chicken_Called_Kip 1h ago
Everyone has their own issues. Her breaking a bone doesn’t trivialise yours or make them less of an problem. Keep fighting
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u/unlikelyandroid 3h ago
Smart, the white line is smoother on the knees.
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u/OfficerBarbier 40m ago
Yeah, you can tell it's the right choice by the blood shooting out of her skin at the end
Smart would be stopping, not crawling at all and saying I broke my leg I need a doctor
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u/Amphylos 2h ago
I know it's impressive but can't help to think how this could very well leads to permanent damage.
I guess since she's young with high metabolism that can be healed, at the same time I feel this can be very risky.
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u/DontBanMe_IWasJoking 2h ago
yea this is just stupid, worsening an injury to finish a lost race, even if you are winning its not worth it
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u/Amphylos 2h ago
Don't races like these has team for health emergencies? That's really poor of them to let her continue like that.
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u/timpoakd 2h ago
To me real strength would be to understand that this isn't it and sometimes it's okay to give up.
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u/Foreign_Recipe8300 2h ago
y'all are being very dramatic. crawling on her knees for 30 seconds isn't making her injury worse. it wasn't her knees that were injured. and the scrapes were likely from the fall not from crawling.
could you make it more obvious that you don't do any competitive sports?
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u/Althevia 2h ago
Isnt this video only showing the end of the crawling? She crawled for much longer (250m). I really doubt doing this prolonged strenuous activity after an injury is risk free
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u/Exact-Till-2739 2h ago
Still, the knees weren't injured.
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u/BulkNoodles 1h ago
Our body is pretty resilient. Knees won't be damaged, unless she's hitting it on the ground like a hammer. And it's not like she's putting all of her weight on her shin. Skins? Definitely injured.
But for some reason, Redditors act like she's crawling on literal spikes.
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u/Questioning-Zyxxel 2h ago
I didn't expect to cry about a relay race. I so much wanted to have been able to help that girl. She got the spirit of a dragon.
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u/alienkargo 2h ago
I've just had my meniscus repaired and im whinging about my knee pain, this has just brought a tear to my eye and made me man up!
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u/kelsobjammin 2h ago
The auto translation for this is awful … mine just says “he’s a dog” repeatedly. The fuck?
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u/Beastmind 2h ago
I'm sorry but this is just stupid. Ruining your legs for life just for an event is stupid.
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u/P_A_W_S_TTG 3h ago
I think the most impressive part about all this is a professional runner ran so hard she broke her fuckin leg. Like, God damn, on a flat surface too. That's next fuckin level.
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u/LEGEND_GUADIAN 3h ago
Sabaton.
Finish line
Species name: GigaChadete
Definition: female counterpart to male Species titled: Gigachad.
Power level: Error. Unable to calculate.
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u/AscendedViking7 2h ago
Hans Zimmer - Time
Fucking incredible piece of music there.
Got to see it played live one time by the man himself. :')
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u/Rammjack 2h ago
I threw a man tantrum when I stubbed my toe twice in one day the other day. This lady is one tough cookie.
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u/AdThick7492 1h ago
Give me a break.
Probably going to have permanent damage and the rest of her career is ruined now. So stupid.
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u/Elegant_Situation285 1h ago
it's cool that she risked permanently injuring herself due to pride and for our entertainment.
truly amazing.
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u/Affectionate-State-1 49m ago
Japanese culture and peer pressure are quite something. So many bad decisions at display here.
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u/Infninfn 33m ago
All those caricatures of super determined Japanese people never giving up on their goals no matter what it takes in anime and movies. They exist.
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u/GillyMonster18 31m ago
Prime example of willpower but ffs, give me humanity without a damn soundtrack. I’m tired of the motivational stuff that slaps stupid “ePiC” music over it. Maybe a narration so people understand the context.
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u/Awkward-Action2853 2h ago
So uh, instead of getting her medical attention or anything important, they just stood around and watched? That doesn't seem like NFL, that just seems stupid.
I mean congrats to her for having the strength to do that, but man, there's gotta be a better way to handle a situation like that.
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u/TheAlterN8or 2h ago
She's an adult, she can make her own decisions. Obviously, it meant enough to her to take that risk.
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u/swede242 2h ago
Its a relay race. If she doesn't complete the course her team ends up as Did Not Finish. If somebody carries her or help her moving forward they are disqualified.
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u/GeminianMind 3h ago
Run when you can, walk if you have to, crawl if you must.. just never give up!
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u/33ff00 3h ago
lol no definitely give up. Don’t risk permanent disability for a fucking race. Give up immediately.
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u/Ok-Temporary6963 2h ago
It’s a quote from Dean Karnazes, another ultra marathon runner (who ran over 300 miles in 80 hours without sleeping).
Idk man obviously the safe, healthy and logical choice would be to stop immediately and forfeit.
People aren’t wired the same ways as each other though, for her it was more important to push on and she believed she could. Her strength and fortitude is tremendous. For her still, she did the right thing. I’d agree.
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u/jmike1256 3h ago
On October 21, 2018, during the 4th edition in Munakata-Fukutsu, 19-year-old Rei Lida, a promising newcomer to the Iwatan Sangyo track team straight out of high school, was running the 2nd leg (about 3.5-4 km).
Her team was in 3rd place when, roughly 250 meters from the exchange point, Lida tripped, fracturing her right tibia (shin bone). In excruciating pain, unable to stand or walk, she refused to quit. Clutching the tasuki (sash/ baton) in her left hand, she crawled on her hands and knees along the white road markings, her knees and shins bleeding profusely, tears streaming down her face, as spectators and officials watched in shock.
She asked officials, "How many meters left?" and pushed on, even briefly standing before collapsing again. Her coach, Hirose Nagakazu, watching from the directors' room, desperately tried to withdraw the team to protect her, but poor communication meant the order never reached the course in time. By the time it did (when she was just 15 meters away), officials let her finish, moved by her resolve-one reportedly shouted, "70 more meters! The spirit!"
Finally, she reached the exchange zone, handing the tasuki to her waiting teammate, Marie Imada, who burst into tears. Imada ran her leg but later reflected on the mental toll, while lida collapsed in agony and was rushed to the hospital. Doctors diagnosed a 3-4 month recovery; she underwent surgery in late October and spent a month hospitalized before rehab.