based on her experience in track and field, one could probably assume that shimizu is used to competition. most track and field activities are structured like races, and hurdles ( her specialty ) are, as well. she’d probably be pitted against 4-5 other runners and asked to COMPETE for the fastest time. however, i think that shimizu is a bit different than other track and field athletes in the fact that she doesn’t seem attached to competition and victory.
this then translates into how she views the volleyball team, since i mentioned in a post earlier that she’s more of a realist than an optimist / pessimist and she appreciates that there are more important lessons to be learned from sports than there is a need for victory.
i like these few panels from chapter 232 ( warfront ). to go into a tiny rhetorical analysis ( because i don’t want to bore ), the choice of imagery here suggests that shimizu pays attention to the small details of track and field : the hurdles, the course, and the sky. there’s no reference to other teammates or competitors ( their shoes, bodies, hands helping her up, any in the background, etc. ), so i can only assume that shimizu is detached from the element of COMPETITION against others. she instead enjoys track and field as a more independent activity, reminiscing over the small details of hurdles, tracks, and skies that were most important / memorable to her.
word choice-wise, shimizu never mentions any sort of FAULT with herself when she doesn’t clear the hurdle. her statements are very distanced and almost apathetic, like “this would probably happen, and it did, simply put.” she doesn’t mention that she tripped because her foot caught or she didn’t jump high enough / run fast enough. instead, she focuses on the facts of what happened and the realization of that when she finally lands.
i think this suggests that her relationship with track and field was never based on competition or trying to become a better athlete to win things. she recognized that she liked running, so she did it despite the consequences of falling and getting scuffed up. she doesn’t get caught up in focusing on her teammates / competitors, nor does she think too hard about what she could have done better to WIN.
this then translates into her experience with volleyball, where she continues not to focus on the idea of WINNING, but the idea of TACKLING a challenge.
i really like these panels because they seem to exemplify that thought process clearly. shimizu acknowledges that her team may win, and they may lose, but that’s not the important part. [ in my hard copy of the manga she actually says “it isn’t like i’m expecting defeat. nor am i counting on victory. a challenge lies before me. i want to take it on. that’s all.” which i like better but i can’t scan it haha. ] what’s most important in shimizu’s mind is this idea of LEVELING THE FIELD AND TAKING ON A CHALLENGE WHEN IT ARISES. she doesn’t think too much about the results ( and seems to make this clear as well during the shrine visit with the third years when she tells them “praying to the gods won’t make you win” ), but more so what she can learn from an experience.
i talk a bit in that post i mentioned earlier about the lessons she’s taken away from being the volleyball club’s manager, and in the end i think those are the things that have become most important to her. when she talks to the third years at the shrine, and when she goes back in her own monologue to discuss the team, she seems less attached to the idea of victory and more about what the players can learn and accomplish on their own.
so … no, she’s not competitive herself, and while she probably recognizes competition in her team, she’s more likely to approach the subject as a challenge to learn from than a match that needs to be won.