Daisuke Matsunaga

Daisuke Matsunaga, born on March 24, 1995, is a Japanese athlete primarily known for his achievements in racewalking. While some sources mention a racing driver with the same name, this profile focuses on the more prominent athlete in the field of athletics.

Matsunaga has made a name for himself competing in the 20 kilometers race walk. He achieved a personal best of 1:17:46 in 2018. His early successes include a silver medal at the 2012 Asian Junior Athletics Championships. He then won the 2014 World Junior Championships in Athletics, setting a championship record at the time.

Matsunaga represented Japan at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, finishing seventh in the 20km race walk. This was a significant achievement, marking him as the first Japanese athlete to finish in the top eight in the discipline at the Olympics. Beyond the Olympics, he has consistently been a strong competitor, securing bronze medals at both the 2015 Asian Race Walking Championships and the 2015 Summer Universiade. He began 2016 with a victory at the Asian Race Walking Championships, setting the stage for his Olympic appearance.