Yahiko Mishima

Yahiko Mishima (三島 弥彦, Mishima Yahiko) was born on February 23, 1886, and died on February 1, 1954. He was a Japanese track and field athlete known for competing in the 1912 Summer Olympics. Mishima was among the first athletes representing Japan at the Olympic Games, alongside marathon runner Shizo Kanakuri.

Biographically, Mishima was the son of Viscount Mishima Michitsune, a significant official in the Meiji government of Japan. His older brother was Yatarō Mishima, who served as the eighth governor of the Bank of Japan. Mishima’s father died when he was two years old.

He attended Gakushuin Peer's School and later enrolled at Tokyo Imperial University, where he studied law. Despite his academic pursuits, Mishima participated actively in various sports during his university years, including college baseball, judo, horseback riding, boating, sumo, and skating. He was notably taller than the average Japanese male of the period, measuring 170 centimeters, compared to the typical height of around 150 centimeters.

During the qualifying trials for the 1912 Stockholm Olympics, held at what later became Haneda Airport, Mishima was initially designated as a member of the referee committee. However, he chose to compete himself, winning the preliminary heats in the 100 meters, 400 meters, and 800 meters races, and finishing second in the 200 meters race. Despite qualifying, support from the Japanese Ministry of Education for Olympic participation was limited; only two athletes, Mishima and Shizo Kanakuri, were sent to Stockholm. They traveled via the Trans-Siberian Railway.

On July 6, 1912, Mishima served as a standard bearer during the opening ceremony of the Olympics. On that day, he competed in several events. He tied his personal record but was eliminated in the first round of the 100 meters, finishing last. In the 200 meters, he also finished last in his heat. In the 400 meters, he advanced to the semi-finals by placing second in his heat; however, with only two runners in that heat, this was last place. Mishima did not compete in the final due to pain in his right leg and defaulted.

After the games, Mishima visited Berlin to examine the grounds for the cancelled 1916 Summer Olympics and to purchase sports equipment unavailable in Japan at the time. He returned to Japan on February 7, 1913. Mishima attempted to qualify for the 1920 Summer Olympics in Antwerp but was unsuccessful, with the 1916 Olympics being canceled due to World War I.

In 1913, Mishima began working with the Yokohama Specie Bank, and he was stationed at its branch in Tsingtao, China, where he worked until 1939. He passed away at his home in Meguro, Tokyo, in 1954. His death was not widely acknowledged by Japanese media at that time.