Eitaro Okano

Eitaro Okano won the first of his four consecutive Japanese national championships in the 400 metre hurdles in 1950, setting the national record in the process. That same year, he also won a national title in the 400 metres. His greatest moment on the international stage came at the 1951 Asian Games, when he took gold in both of those events, as well as silver in the 4x400 metres relay with non-Olympians Yorio Mizuyoke, Ichiro Tao, and Fumio Nishiuchi. His next stop was the 1952 Helsinki Olympics, where he was entered into three events, although he did not start in the 400 metres. In the 400 metre hurdles, he was eliminated in the quarterfinals, while in the 4x400 metres relay he was eliminated in round one alongside Junkichi Matoba, Hiroshi Yamamoto, and Yoshitaka Muroya. Okano graduated from Chuo University in 1953 and became a sports reporter, covering the 1964 Tokyo Olympics among other events. At the time of his retirement, he was the director of the sports department at Mainichi Shimbun.

Personal Bests: 400 – 49.9 (1951); 400H – 53.0 (1952).