Kinoshita to represent U.S.

Folsom High sophomore Michael Kinoshita will represent the United States at the 2011 International Blind Sports Federation World Youth and Student Championships.Kinoshita, 15, was born with achromatopsia, a condition that causes colorblindness, as well as making it difficult to see in high-light levels. He has no peripheral vision in one eye or depth perception. Kinoshita's eyes also wobble, a condition called natural nystagmus, which makes seeing even more difficult. His condition has not gotten any worse since birth and because it's not correctable, it will never get any better.Kinoshita learned of the International Blind Sports Federation from Richard Hunter, a fellow Folsom athlete who is also blind. Kinoshita sent a letter to the organization, along with his times in certain running events, and recently received a letter saying he's been selected to compete in the event July 12-17 in Colorado Springs, Colo."I was surprised about it because I hadn't thought about it lately," Kinoshita said. "Being selected makes me feel beyond happy. I couldn't be more proud."Kinoshita plans on competing in the 800 meters, 1,500 meters and the 5 kilometers. While he's never run a 5K on a track, he said his road times convert to a time less than 17 minutes on the track. His top 1,500-meter time is 4 minutes, 38 seconds.Hunter, who has befriended Kinoshita and follows his performances in both cross country and track and field, is a big fan of Kinoshita's."One of the things that I've tried to do is introduce Michael to the international visually impaired community," Hunter said. "I think Michael has a shot to be a collegiate runner and further down the road a Para-Olympian hopeful. I'm impressed with Michael's talent. By him being a successful athlete he can inspire a lot of people, which will show others that those with visual impairments can do really incredible things."Kinoshita is off to a good start this spring on the track. He's already posted a personal-best time in the 1,600 meters of 4:55 and on Saturday at the Bella Vista Invitational ran his best two-mile time of 10:28."My goal this season is to break 4:30 in the miles and 10 minutes in the two mile," Kinoshita said.