Yasu Hirai Fukuoka OLY (@fortheloveofyasu) knows the background of fellow Olympian Spiros Gianniotis (@spirosgianniotis_).

Gianniotis qualified for his first Olympics in 2000, his second Olympics in 2004 in his native Greece, then he finished 16th in the 10 km marathon swim at the 2008 Beijing Olympics – after temporarily taking the lead on the final loop, then he finished just out of the podium 4th in the 2012 London Olympics, and then at the age of 36 in his fifth Olympics, won a silver medal in the 2016 Rio Olympics marathon swim.

His dedication and commitment to winning an Olympic medal were impressive – and provides an inspiration to Fukuoka. “My goal is to place in the Top 8 at the Ironman World Championships in Kona in 2026. Similarly, my friend Spiros motivates me to strive for a medal at the Los Angeles Olympics in 2028 when I’ll be 38.”

After years out of the sport, Fukuoka just signed a professional athlete contract with a large public company in Japan and is now focused on his return to elite competition, with the Asian Games in Japan in 2026 and the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics as his long-range goals.

Post-retirement, his competitive drive was kickstarted because he was initially focused on his health while working out at the the Bondi Icebergs Baths in Sydney, Australia. “What started as a solitary journey transformed into something much greater. Training alone in a sauna suit soon evolved into a supportive community experience. Dan Fish and Tomi Bjorck legends from Finland and England, became key figures in my journey. Rich Coombes, a serial entrepreneur and Ironman triathlete, reignited my entrepreneurial spirit – one I thought I had left behind.

My encounter with David Gasan was pivotal. Through him, I not only swam with the Bondi Salties, but also gained invaluable insights into capitalism. David’s mentorship sparked the beginnings of this new chapter in my life. Cameron Wurf’s example of balancing road racing with Ironman triathlons inspires my pursuit of both 10 km marathon swimming and Ironman triathlons.”

Fukuoka placed 15th at the 2012 London Olympics 10 km marathon swim and 8th in the 2016 Rio Olympics – in a mad sprint to the finish with only 7 seconds separating the top 12 men in the lead pack [see results below].

Fukuoka through the years:

2016 Olympic 10K Marathon Swim Results

1. Ferry Weertman, Netherlands 1:52:59.8
2. Spyridon Gianniotis, Greece 1:52:59.8
3. Marc-Antoine Daniel Frede Olivier, France 1:53:02.0
4. Lijun Zu, China 1:53:02.0
5. Jordan Wilimovsky, USA 1:53:03.2
6. Simone Ruffini, Italy 1:53:03.5
7. Federico Vanelli, Italy 1:53:03.9
8. Yasunari Hirai, Japan 1:53:04.6
9. Christian Reichert, Germany 1:53:04.7
10. Chad Ho, South Africa 1:53:04.8
11. Evgenii Drattcev, Russia 1:53:04.8
12. Ous Mellouli, Tunisia 1:53:06.1
13. Mark Papp, Hungary 1:53:11.7
14. Ventsislav Aydaski, Bulgaria 1:53:16.1
15. Ivan Enderica Ochoa, Ecuador 1:53:16.2
16. Richard Weinberger, Canada 1:53:16.4
17. Allan Do Carmo, Brazil 1:53:16.4
18. Kane Rae Francis Radford, New Zealand 1:53:18.7
19. Richard Nagy, Slovakia 1:53:35.4
20. Jarrod Poort, Australia 1:53:40.7
21. Erwin Maldonado, Venezuela 1:54:33.6
22. Marwan Ahmed Aly Morsy Elamrawy, Egypt 1:59:17.2
DSQ Sean Ryan, USA
DSQ Vitaliy Khudyakov, Kazakhstan (Asia)
DSQ Jack Burnell, Great Britain

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