#u23

SHARKS U23 PROSPECTS RANKINGS | 2025-26

PRESEASON—Scott Wheeler [x]

MIDSEASON—Corey Pronman [x]

Wrestling Weigh-In, up to 79 kg, Russia 2021, U23.

Евгений Гуров

Первенство России по вольной борьбе среди юниоров до 24 лет. Наро-Фоминск 30.09-03.10.2021.

Takuya Furusawa (24) is probably the most remarkable Japanese wheelchair basketball of these days. Takuya was born with a congenital condition called spina bifida. This means that his spine and his spinal cord didn't form properly. When he was just six years old, he also developed syringomyelia, a complication which further damaged his spinal cord and it's surrounding nerve tissue. He has been paralyzed from the waist down ever since and lost all feeling in his legs.

Now being a full-time wheelchair user, Takuya's mother encouraged him to visit a wheelchair basketball experience session in Yokohama, his hometown. Takuya remembers that he thought it was quite challenging, but he loved it right away!

Takuya was really motivated for improving his skills, and he never have a hard time practicing. He soon joined the "Para Kanagawa SC", from Fujisawa City.

At the age of 17, Takuya represented his country for the first time at the 2013 "U23 Wheelchair Basketball World Championship".

In 2016, Takuya became captain of the U23 Japanese national team. Later that year, the Japanese team won the silver medal at the "Fazza International Wheelchair Basketball Tournament" in Dubai(UAE).

Takuya helped Para Kanagawa winning the "Kitakyushu Champions Cup" both in 2016 and in 2017. He also attributed to their victory at the "Mitsubishi Electric World Challenge Cup" in Tokyo in 2018.

His next big goal? Competing in the 2021 Paralympic Games in Tokyo, for which he has been selected!

If you'd like, you can find Para Kanagawa SC Wheelchair Basketball down below, or you can follow Takuya on Instagram 🏀🏀🏀