WNAM REPORT: A wheelchair-maker in the city of Chiba continues to support Paralympic athletes, helping them clinch over 140 medals in the past Games.
“We are backseat players who help athletes play well,” said Koji Yamaguchi, president of the wheelchair-maker, Ox Engineering.
Founded in 1988 as a developer of motorcycle engines and parts, the company switched to the wheelchair business in 1995. It has a factory at its head office that manufactures wheelchairs for competitive sports.
“Manufacturing is a repetitive process of trial and error,” Yamaguchi said. “We have cultivated methods and ways of thinking to develop things since we were developing motorcycle engines,” he added.
About a year after Ox Engineering started selling wheelchairs for daily use, it also began marketing sports wheelchairs for competitions. The company has been developing and manufacturing wheelchairs for use in various sports including tennis, basketball and racing.
In the development of athletic wheelchairs, the company tests new materials and various processing methods after obtaining the consent of the athletes it supports.
“By utilizing the know-how accumulated through the development of sports wheelchairs, we can provide wheelchairs that are easier to use even for daily users,” Yamaguchi said.
Paralympic athletes using Ox Engineering wheelchairs won more than 140 medals in summer and winter events combined, from the Atlanta Games in 1996 to the Tokyo Games in 2021.
This shows that wheelchairs made by Ox Engineering are indispensable to Paralympic athletes. Still, Yamaguchi only said, “We are just helping them play better as much as possible.”
“Athletes come into Paralympic Games after hard training, so we will be happy if they get good results,” he said.
