Legendary swimmer and former Japanese Olympic Committee President Hironoshin Furuhashi died in Rome, during the swimming world championships, a senior Japan Swimming Federation official said Aug. 2. He was 80.

Furuhashi, nicknamed the "Flying fish of Fujiyama," was discovered dead in his hotel room bed Aug. 2. The cause of death was not immediately known.

A national hero who held a number of key posts in the sports world and was honorary president of the Japan Swimming Federation, Furuhashi set world records in the men's 400-meter and 1,500-meter freestyle events at the national championships in 1948.