Kentaro Kawatsu
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 Kentaro Kawatsu (left), Toshio Irie and Masaji Kiyokawa at the 1932 Olympics | ||||||||||||
| Personal information | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Native name | 河津憲太郎 | |||||||||||
| Nationality | Japanese | |||||||||||
| Born | September 26, 1915 | |||||||||||
| Died | March 23, 1970 (aged 54) | |||||||||||
| Sport | ||||||||||||
| Sport | Swimming | |||||||||||
| Strokes | backstroke | |||||||||||
Medal record
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Kentaro Kawatsu (河津憲太郎, Kawatsu Kentarō; September 26, 1914 – March 23, 1970) was a Japanese swimmer who competed at the 1932 Summer Olympics.
Kawatsu was a native of Hiroshima City, where his father, a physical education instructor at the predecessor of Hiroshima University, became known as the "Father of Hiroshima Sports".[1]
In 1930, while still in middle school, Kawatsu set a new Japan record of 33.2 seconds for the 50-meter backstroke. In 1932, while a student at Meiji University, he was selected for the Japanese Olympic team to the Los Angeles Olympics. The Japanese swimming team had significant success that year.[2] The team took the gold, silver and bronze medals in the 100 meter backstroke event, with Kawatsu winning the bronze medal.[3]
He subsequently participated in the 1934 Far Eastern Games held in Manila.
Kawatsu killed himself on March 23, 1970.[3]
