Changes: Takeda Toshihiro

Revision as of 05:32, 7 February 2010

Takeda, SASUKE 22

Takeda Toshihiro (竹田敏浩), a firefighter from Gifu Prefecture, Japan, is a SASUKE All-Star, best known for his incredibly consistent performances. He has advanced to the Third Stage a total of 13 times, a SASUKE record, including 7 consecutive times from SASUKE 11 to SASUKE 17. His height and weight are recorded at 171 cm and 63 kg respectively. Despite his impressive Third Stage advance rate, he has never managed to advance to the Final Stage, the only one of six All-Stars to have this dubious distinction. His name is listed as 竹田敏弘 in the 5th competition, and it is unknown why he changed his name.

SASUKE 5 - 10

Takeda made his debut in the 5th competition, immediately after the large-scale renewal caused by Akiyama Kazuhiko's kanzenseiha. With the 73 competitors before him having all failed, Takeda impressed all by being the 1st to clear the First Stage, with 1.08 second left to spare. Only two other competitors cleared that day (Yamamoto Shingo, Yamada Katsumi), further making a lasting impression on fellow competitors and the audience. However, in the Second Stage he failed immediately after starting the Spider Walk. In the 6th competition, Takeda cleared the First Stage with 10 seconds to spare. He took his revenge on the Spider Walk, and cleared the Second Stage as well, but ran out of energy on the Body Prop, and failed there after a long struggle. However, in the 7th competition, due to catching a cold before the competition, he struggled at the Soritatsu Kabe and timed out in the First Stage inches before the goal. In the 8th competition, though the rain affected his run, he made his way successfully to the Pipe Slider. Though he slipped and lost his grip before he could attempt a jump, after this tournament he was considered a member of the All-Stars. In the 9th competition, though he took two attempts at the Soritatsu Kabe, he safely made it back to the Third Stage. Everything having been smooth sailing up to the Lamp Grasper, he slipped and lost his grip with only several globes left to go. Though he recovered, and managed to advance a little more, he ran out of grip with 2 globes left and fell into the water below. In the 10th anniversary competition, he failed the Jump Hang in the First Stage, an obstacle he had never failed before. In an interview after his run, he said that "He knew it [that he was going to fail] the moment he stepped on the trampoline."

SASUKE 11 - 17

In the 11th competition, Takeda once again made his way back to the Third Stage. He had dislocated his right shoulder a few months before, and due to this he suddenly lost his balance and fell into the water while attempting the Body Prop. In SASUKE 12, he advanced all the way to the Pipe Slider, but perhaps also because of his injury, did not get very much distance on the dismounting jump and fell into the water. Afterward, he could not even get out of the water by himself, having used up all of his strength. In SASUKE 13, having placed 1st in the trials, he made his way yet again to the Third Stage. He struggled with the Cliffhanger, and though he made it past the second gap, he lost his grip inches before the end of the obstacle and fell into the water. In SASUKE 14, he left the fastest time (32.44 seconds left) on the First Stage. However, he failed yet again at the Cliffhanger. In SASUKE 15, he left 23 seconds on the clock in the First Stage. Though he passed the Second Stage with no problems, Makoto Nagano (who competed right after him) fell on the Metal Spin, making Takeda the last challenger on the Third Stage for the first time. This time, he made it past the Cliffhanger and all the way to the Devil Balanço, but with his left hand on the Pipe Slider, and his right (injured) shoulder taking all of his weight, he lost his grip and fell into the water below. This was the first (and to date, only) time Takeda was the best performer at a tournament. In SASUKE 16, he made his way yet again to the Third Stage, but fell at the Cliffhanger, which he had passed the tournament before. In SASUKE 17, with his family present and having become the poster boy for the Japanese firefighting department, Takeda seemed very nervous before his run. However, he left 13.37 seconds on the clock in the First Stage, and left the fastest time, 13.84 seconds left on the Second Stage. Making his way past the Cliffhanger and the Devil Balanço, he made it to the end of the Pipe Slider, but again failed to get enough distance, and fell into the water.

During this time, Takeda made it to the Third Stage a record 7 consecutive times.

Shin-SASUKE

After Sasuke 17, originally Takeda had considered retiring from Sasuke, but was convinced otherwise by his children. In SASUKE 18, he successfully cleared the newly-redesigned First Stage. With this, he extended his record of consecuting First Stage clears to 8. However, he struggled at the new Salmon Ladder in the Second Stage, and fell before the last, largest gap. It was the first time he had failed the Second Stage since Sasuke 5. In SASUKE 19, he had to attempt the Pole Maze twice, wasting valuable time. Though he made it to the Soritatsu Kabe, he failed to scale it multiple times (perhaps because of the added height), and though he eventually cleared it, he timed out immediately after. It was his first time he had failed the First Stage since SASUKE 10. In SASUKE 20, though he had no problems for most of the course, he lost a lot of time trying to transfer to the cargo rope in the Flying Chute. He timed out on the Rope Ladder, marking the first time he failed the First Stage twice in a row. In SASUKE 21, he cleared the First Stage with 15.79 seconds left to spare. He exacted his revenge on the Salmon Ladder, passing it with ease, and made his way for a record 11th time to the Third Stage. He became the first to clear the Shin-Cliffhanger, and ultimately failed the Hang Climbing. In SASUKE 22, he misstepped the trampoline on the Jumping Spider in the First Stage, and failed there for the first time. He was able to return to the Third Stage in SASUKE 23 and was able to clear the Hang Climbing that eliminated him before, but failed the very next obstacle, the Spider Flip. Being the only All-star to clear the first stage in the final Shin-Sasuke tournament, SASUKE 24 Takeda returned to the Third Stage for a record 13th time. Expectations for Takeda to make the Final Stage were high, as 5 subsequent competitors cleared the 3rd stage until it was Takeda's turn. Carrying the expectations of everyone and including the All stars, Takeda failed to pull himself up to the Spider Flip's first wall, a feat he barely managed to do in the previous tournament.

Results

SASUKE	#	Result	Notes
5	74	Failed Spider Walk (Second Stage)
6	93	Failed Body Prop (Third Stage)
7	96	Failed Rope Climb (First Stage)	Time Out
8	71	Failed Pipe Slider (Third Stage)
9	97	Failed Lamp Grasper (Third Stage)
10	997	Failed Jump Hang (First Stage)
11	97	Failed Body Prop (Third Stage)
12	95	Failed Pipe Slider (Third Stage)
13	98	Failed Cliff Hanger (Third Stage)
14	97	Failed Cliff Hanger (Third Stage)
15	96	Failed Devil Balanço (Third Stage)	Last Man Standing
16	98	Failed Cliff Hanger (Third Stage)
17	91	Failed Pipe Slider (Third Stage)
18		Failed Salmon Ladder (Second Stage)	He did not have a number but was around 86th to run.
19	96	Failed Warped Wall (First Stage)	Time Out, just before Flying Chute
20	1995	Failed Rope Ladder (First Stage)	Time Out
21	98	Failed Hang Climbing (Third Stage)
22	92	Failed Jumping Spider (First Stage)
23	97	Failed Spider Flip (Third Stage)
24	98	Failed Spider Flip (Third Stage)

@@ Line 19: / Line 19: @@
 After Sasuke 17, originally Takeda had considered retiring from Sasuke, but was convinced otherwise by his children. In [[SASUKE 18]], he successfully cleared the newly-redesigned First Stage. With this, he extended his record of consecuting First Stage clears to 8. However, he struggled at the new [[Salmon Ladder]] in the Second Stage, and fell before the last, largest gap. It was the first time he had failed the Second Stage since Sasuke 5.
 In [[SASUKE 19]], he had to attempt the [[Pole Maze]] twice, wasting valuable time. Though he made it to the Soritatsu Kabe, he failed to scale it multiple times (perhaps because of the added height), and though he eventually cleared it, he timed out immediately after. It was his first time he had failed the First Stage since SASUKE 10. In [[SASUKE 20]], though he had no problems for most of the course, he lost a lot of time trying to transfer to the cargo rope in the [[Flying Chute]]. He timed out on the [[Rope Ladder]], marking the first time he failed the First Stage twice in a row.
-In [[SASUKE 21]], he cleared the First Stage with 15.79 seconds left to spare. He exacted his revenge on the Salmon Ladder, passing it with ease, and made his way for a record 11th time to the Third Stage. He became the first to clear the [[Shin-Cliffhanger]], and ultimately failed the [[Hang Climbing]]. In [[SASUKE 22]], he misstepped the trampoline on the [[Jumping Spider]] in the First Stage, and failed there for the first time. He was able to return to the Third Stage in [[SASUKE 23]] and was able to clear the Hang Climbing that eliminated him before, but failed the very next obstacle, the [[Spider Flip]].
+In [[SASUKE 21]], he cleared the First Stage with 15.79 seconds left to spare. He exacted his revenge on the Salmon Ladder, passing it with ease, and made his way for a record 11th time to the Third Stage. He became the first to clear the [[Shin-Cliffhanger]], and ultimately failed the [[Hang Climbing]]. In [[SASUKE 22]], he misstepped the trampoline on the [[Jumping Spider]] in the First Stage, and failed there for the first time. He was able to return to the Third Stage in [[SASUKE 23]] and was able to clear the Hang Climbing that eliminated him before, but failed the very next obstacle, the [[Spider Flip]]. Being the only All-star to clear the first stage in the final Shin-Sasuke tournament, [[SASUKE 24]] Takeda returned to the Third Stage for a record 13th time. Expectations for Takeda to make the Final Stage were high, as 5 subsequent competitors cleared the 3rd stage until it was Takeda's turn. Carrying the expectations of everyone and including the All stars, Takeda failed to pull himself up to the Spider Flip's first wall, a feat he barely managed to do in the previous tournament.