Skip to main content

Noguchi Officially Withdraws From Beijing Olympics

http://sports.nikkei.co.jp/index.aspx?n=AS1H1205J%2012082008
http://www.iza.ne.jp/news/newsarticle/sports/other/169194/
http://www.iza.ne.jp/news/newsarticle/sports/other/169193/
http://headlines.yahoo.co.jp/hl?a=20080812-00000076-mai-spo

translated and edited by Brett Larner

On the evening of Aug. 12, the JOC announced that Athens Olympics women`s marathon gold medalist Mizuki Noguchi (30, Team Sysmex), who at this Sunday's Beijing Olympic marathon planned to attempt to become the first woman to defend an Olympic marathon title, has officially withdrawn from the race due to an injury to her left thigh. Representatives of Noguchi's team informed Rikuren of their decision earlier in the day on the 12th.

Noguchi issued the following statement: "I've tried everything I can to recover, but when I run I'm still in a lot of pain and I can't take my training to the next level. Everything I've done in the last four years has been for Beijing so my desire to run has never disappeared, but considering my current situation I have to give it up. Because of my withdrawal there's going to be much heavier expectation of Tosa and Nakamura so I worry that the pressure on them is going to be even stronger, but I sincerely hope they do well in Beijing."

JOC vice president and secretary general Kenichi Chizuka commented, "It's a shock. If I can speak bluntly, the coach is more to blame here than the athlete. Rikuren informed us of this decision and the JOC has no choice but to respect it, but it is utterly disappointing. Let's all get behind Tosa now."

Reached for comment, Noguchi's father Minoru (56) said that he had learned of Noguchi's withdrawal through a telephone call from a friend who had seen the news on TV. "She's the one who's suffering the most," he said with profound sadness. "I don't know what I could say to her." During Noguchi's training he never had contact with her because of her intense focus. "She's the kind of person who would run until her legs break for all those who support her, so her injury must be really serious. This was the coaches' decision about what's best for her future, so there's nothing we as amateurs can say about it."

The JOC also reported that women's marathon team alternate Tomo Morimoto (Team Tenmaya) is likewise injured and will not be able to run. As a result, only Reiko Tosa (32, Team Mitsui Sumitomo Kaijo) and Yurika Nakamura (22, Team Tenmaya) will represent Japan in the women's marathon.

Comments

Anonymous said…
ES UNA HORRIBLE NOTICIA
CON NOGUCHI FUERA , LAS PREDICCIONES SE ABREN , TOSA Y NAKAMURA ESTAN BAJO UNA GRAN PRESION , SOBRETODO TOSA QUE ES LA MAS EXPERIMENTADA PERO ELLA CORRIO BIEN EN EL CALOR DE OSAKA 2007 , ASI QUE TENGO FE EN ELLA, PIENSO QUE ZHOU, RADCLIFFE Y NDEREBA TAMBIEN ESTARAN EN LA LUCHA DE LAS MEDALLAS , TAMBIEN DEENA KASTOR, CREO QUE LO DE LA LESION DE RADCLIFFE ES MENTIRA Y QUE ELLA ESTA EN MUY BUENA FORMA.-
MARCOSHASHI CHILE

Most-Read This Week

Asian Games Preview - Entries, Timetable and Live Results

Back in Japan for the first time in 32 years and representing 60% of the world's population, with more athletes competing across all sports than at the Olympics, the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games are already underway. Athletics competition starts tomorrow and runs through Tuesday the 29th. Some of the biggest names on the entry list include: Rumesh Tharanga Pathirage (SRI) - men's javelin throw - 2026 World Ultimate Championships gold and 2026 Diamond League champion Haruka Kitaguchi (JPN) - women's javelin throw - 2026 World Ultimate Championships and 2024 Paris Olympics gold Birhanu Balew (BRN) - men's 5000 m/10000 m - 2026 Diamond League 5000 m champion Sanghyeok Woo (KOR) - men's high jump - 2025 Tokyo World Championships silver Hayato Katsuki (JPN) - men's marathon race walk - 2025 Tokyo World Championships bronze Abderrahman Samba (QAT) - men's 400 mH - 2025 Tokyo World Championships bronze Jiale Zhang (CHN) - women's hammer throw - 2025 Tokyo W...

Asian Games Competition Schedule

The daily athletics event schedule for September's Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games . Wednesday, Sept. 23 7:30 - Women's / Men's Half Marathon Race Walk Final Thursday, Sept. 24 10:00 - Women's Heptathlon 100 mH 10:20 - Mixed 4x400 m Relay Heats 10:30 - Men's Triple Jump Heats 10:40 - Women's Heptathlon High Jump 19:05 - Men's High Jump Heats 19:13 - Women's Heptathlon Shot Put 19:33 - Women's 100 m Heats 19:44 - Women's Triple Jump Final 20:08 - Men's 100 m Heats 20:55 - Men's Discus Throw Final 21:00 - Women's Heptathlon 200 m 21:25 - Women's 10000 m Final 22:15 - Mixed 4x400 m Relay Final Friday, Sept. 25 10:00 - Women's Heptathlon Long Jump 10:30 - Men's 400 m Heats 11:25 - Women's Heptathlon Javelin Throw 19:05 - Women's Shot Put Final 19:13 - Women's 100 m Semifinal 19:33 - Men's 100 m Semifinal 20:03 - Women's Pole Vault Final 20:11 - Women's Heptathlon 800 m 20:32 - Men's 10000 m Final 20:40 - M...

Endo, Nishikawa and Yamakawa Announce Corporate Team Changes

The SG Holdings men's corporate team announced on Oct. 1 that long-distance athletes Hyuga Endo and Yuichiro Nishikawa have joined its roster after leaving the Sumitomo Denko team. Endo, 28, won the Junior Olympics 3000 m while at Koriyama Nishi J.H.S. before going on to Gakuho Ishikawa H.S. where he was the the top Japanese placer in the 5000 m at the National High School Championships 2 years in a row. After graduating from Gakuho Ishikawa he joined the Sumitomo Denko team, winning the National Championships 5000 m in 2021. He won gold at the 2023 Asian Championships and represented Japan at the 2022 and 2023 World Championships. "I will give everything I have as part of the team and work hard toward helping it win the New Year Ekiden," he said of his new environment. Of his personal goals he said, "I want to focus on the 5000 m and reach new levels to compete internationally." Nishikawa, 28, was a member of Tokai University 's winning teams at the H...