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2008 As Seen By JRN Readers

JRN's most-read articles of 2008 by month:

January
First-time winner Mara Yamauchi takes Osaka in 2:25:10 PB, Kayoko Fukushi 19th in debut.Jan. 27

February
Last run for Team Toshiba LSI: the Betsudai Marathon. - Feb. 2
Tokyo Marathon 2007 through foreign runners' eyes. - Feb. 4
Arata Fujiwara: an unknown contender for Beijing. - Feb. 19

March
Koide presecient: Yurika Nakamura wins Nagoya in 2:25:51 debut. - Mar. 9

April
30 hospitalized after honeybee attack at Saga Sakura Half-Marathon. - Apr. 8

May
Mekubo Mogusu sets Olympic A-standard 10000 m meet record at Kanto University track and field championships. - May 20

June
Sapporo International Half-Marathon preview. - June 11

July
Chisato Fukushima selected as first women's 100 m Olympian in 56 years. - July 6

August
Mizuki Noguchi considering dropping out of Olympics after hospitalization for fatigue. - Aug. 9
Chunxiu Zhou's Japanese coach Shinya Takeuchi seeks to make personal compensation to China for WWII. - Aug. 14
A 'good enough' mentality can never win. - Aug. 26

September
Nobuharu Asahara bows out to full house at Super Meet in Kawasaki. - Sept. 24

October
Nihon University's Gitau steals Izumo Ekiden victory from Komazawa.Oct. 14

November
Deeper and deeper goes the greatest half-marathon in the world - Ageo 2008. - Nov. 17

December
Tsegaye Kebede breaks Samuel Wanjiru's course record and Gert Thys' Japan soil record with 2:06:10 win in Fukuoka. - Dec. 7
Samuel Wanjiru shares the secret of training to win. - Dec. 24

(c) 2008 Brett Larner
all rights reserved

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Australian Male Arrested on Drug Smuggling Charges After Entering Japan for Osaka Marathon

On Apr. 9 the Kinki Region Bureau of Health, Labor and Welfare's Drug Control Division arrested Matthew Inglis Fox , 38, an Australian business owner of no known fixed address, on charges of violating the importation regulations of the Narcotics Control Act by smuggling tablets containing marijuana elements from the United States. The suspect had entered Japan in February to run in the Osaka Marathon . The suspect was arrested on suspicion of smuggling approximately 12 pills containing marijuana by sending them from a U.S. airport to Osaka's Kansai Airport using an international courier service on Feb. 19. The Osaka branch of the Customs Service discovered the tablets in arriving cargo and suspected them to be narcotics. Customs contacted the Narcotics Control Division, which then began its investigation of the case. According to the Narcotics Control Division, the suspect denies the charges.  Translator's note: Fox, who received a lifetime ban from the Ageo City Half Mara...

Australian YouTuber Handed Lifetime Ban by Ageo City Half Marathon After Running 1:06 with Another Runner's Bib (updated)

After discussion with their race's chief JAAF referee, on Nov. 27 the organizers of the Ageo City Half Marathon handed down a lifetime ban from their event against 36-year-old Australian Matt Inglis Fox  for running the Nov. 15 race wearing the bib number of another JAAF-registered runner. The incident came to light after Fox posted on his personal Instagram account that he had run a PB of 1:06:33 and finished 203rd in Ageo with a 10 km split of 31:03, along with photos and video of himself in the race wearing a bib number beginning with 11. Fox did not appear in the results by name or in that time or place, the closest match being a 1:06:54 gross, 1:06:50 net finish time with a 31:21 10 km split for 18th place in the JAAF-registered division and 209th overall by bib number 1129, registered to a non-Japanese Tokyo-resident club runner. The club runner, Harrisson Uk , readily confirmed that he had given his bib to Fox, saying, "I gave my number to Matt. It wasn't me."...

Tokai University Installs 325-LED Electronic Pacing Light System at Home Track

On Apr. 14 the Tokai University track and field team and Faculty of Engineering announced that in March they had installed an electronic pacing system at the university's home track at its Shonan campus. The pacing system involved LED lights placed around the edge of the track, which light up sequentially based on the set pace. It is the first time in Japan that this kind of system developed by a domestic manufacturer has been permanently installed at a track. LED pacing systems are used internationally at Diamond League meets and high-level time trial races. Domestically they have been introduced at events like the National Championships 10000 m, Hokuren Distance Challenge and Hachioji Long Distance meets. They have become popular with fans for adding color to the visual presentation of the race and for making it easier to follow the pace of the race. Tokai University began plans to develop and permanently install an electronic pacing system two years ago. The system was develope...