SINGAPORE – Bearing a passing resemblance to Hollywood star Vin Diesel, Japan water polo driver Taiyo Watanabe is just as fast and furious in the pool.

While the American actor shaves his head to maintain his trademark look, Watanabe has alopecia, an autoimmune disease that causes complete loss of hair on the scalp and body.

Although he shared with The Sunday Times that he was never bullied because of his condition, he was still perturbed when it first surfaced when he was eight, which was when he started playing water polo.

The cheery 23-year-old said: “I hated being seen by other people at the time and I was so negative. But as I became better in water polo, I started having more confidence in myself.

“I hope others in a similar situation can find something they enjoy doing. I felt it was important to show what I can do, and for me it is through water polo.

“At age eight, I enjoyed being able to throw a ball in the water, and I still do, and my success in the sport really cheered me up. I have met great teammates, and feel great joy when I score. I realised that playing with energy is a lot of fun, and I want people to see me doing well.”

In and out of the pool, Watanabe is hard to miss.

As his team lined up for the national anthem at the OCBC Aquatic Centre ahead of their World Aquatics Championships (WCH) opener against World Cup winners Spain, he stood out among his teammates, who all have full heads of black hair.

In the water, he was equally eye-catching, winning two sprints to help his 12th-ranked team start the first and third quarters with ball possession. He finished the match with four goals in their 22-16 loss to world No. 2 Spain. In the other Group B match, world No. 3 Hungary beat 11th-ranked Australia 18-6.

In an earlier interview with World Aquatics, Japan coach Yoshinori Shiota said: “Taiyo is one of the most talented water polo players in the world. He has a super-fast swimming speed and a brilliant shooting sense that no one can imitat...