Skip to main content

Mizuki Noguchi Returns From Kunming "Very Excited" for Tokyo International Women`s Marathon

http://www.tokyo-np.co.jp/s/tochu/article/2007110801000640.html

translated by Brett Larner

Athens Olympic marathon gold medallist Mizuki Noguchi returned to Japan today, arriving at Kansai International Airport in Osaka after spending several weeks at a training camp in Kunming, China in preparation for her Beijing Olympic bid at next week`s Tokyo International Women`s Marathon. Asked about her condition, Noguchi replied "I am very excited and 100% prepared for this race."

In Tokyo, Noguchi will face former Japanese national record holder Yoko Shibui and Hiromi Ominami, who was on the same flight from Kunming as Noguchi. Noguchi set the Japanese national record of 2:19:12 at the 2005 Berlin Marathon but has not run a marathon since then due to a series of accidents. She says that her comeback race will not be a guaranteed victory. "With rivals like these running it`s not going to be an easy race. Shibui and Ominami both look like they are in great shape so I expect the pace to be very high. I`m really looking forward to it."

Comments

Anonymous said…
Just wanted to let you know that TrackandFieldNews.com picked up your blog and posted it today, so you should gets lots of traffic. Nice reading about you. I ran for Trinity College and then Namban Rengo. Bob and the gang should remember me, I am the boat builder who was in Japan studying traditional Japanese boat building in 2002-2003.

www.douglasbrooksboatbuilding.com
Brett Larner said…
Thanks for the notice, Douglas. Everyone who was around that era remembers you.

Most-Read This Week

Arao Becomes 1st Man in 40 Years to Score Back-to-Back Ome Road Race Wins

30 km is an under-appreciated distance, and both of Japan's big races at that distance happened Sunday. At the Ome Road Race in western Tokyo's mountains, Sydney Marathon 6th-placer Masato Arao (ND Software) became the first man since the great Kunimitsu Ito in 1985-1986 to win back-to-back years. Arao, who finished 39th of 40 on his leg at the New Year Ekiden last month, stayed in the pack through 20 km before going on the attack, putting over a minute on New Year Ekiden Sixth Stage CR breaker Yudai Shimazu (GMO). Sub-1:31 winning times are rare on the tough and hilly Ome course, but Arao's 1:30:54 almost equaled his 1:30:50 from last year, making him the first Japanese man ever to do it twice and second only to CR holder Ezekiel Cheboitibin . Next up Arao races the Tokyo Marathon, where he is targeting sub-2:06. Shimazu was 2nd in 1:31:58 and Yuta Nakayama (JR Higashi Nihon) 3rd in 1:32:07. Cheboitibin was only 9th, running almost 8 minutes off his CR in 1:36:42. Shi...

Nagoya Women's Marathon Elite Field

Last year's top 3 Sheila Chepkirui , Sayaka Sato and Eunice Chebichii Chumba are back for this year's Nagoya Women's Marathon on Mar. 8, but things are being set up more for it to be a race between Chepkirui, 2:17:49 in Berlin 2023, Aynalem Desta , 2:17:37 in Amsterdam last fall, and Japanese NR holder Honami Maeda , 2:18:59 at the Osaka International Women's Marathon in 2024. Aynalem has the freshest sub-2:20 of the 3, with neither Chepkirui nor Maeda having done it in 2 years. Maeda's only recent result is a 1:10:07 from Houston last month, but when she ran her NR she didn't have any kind of tuneup race to indicate her fitness so it's probably best not to read too much into that. If it goes out as a 2:18 race those are the only 3 who can probably hang with it. If it turns out to be more of a 2:20 race like when Chepkirui won in 2:20:40 last year then there's a group of 7 at the 2:20-2:22 level who will be in the picture, including Chumba, Selly Chep...

'Kobe 2024: Aitchison, Athmani Lead Record-Breaking Thursday'

  https://www.paralympic.org/news/kobe-2024-para-athletics-world-championships-aitchison-athmani-lead-record-breaking-thursday Complete results and daily schedule from the Kobe World Para Athletics Championships are here .