Skip to main content

Rikuren Announces 2009 Yokohama International Women's Marathon and a Wide Range of Changes

http://www.47news.jp/CN/200812/CN2008121501000321.html
http://www.asahi.com/sports/spo/TKY200812160248.html
http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/sports/news/20081215-OYT1T00389.htm?from=navr

translated and edited by Brett Larner

On Dec. 15 Rikuren announced a wide range of changes to its regulations and procedures for the upcoming in the 2009-2010 season. Potentially the largest change is the removal of its ban on the use of a title sponsor's name in the names of large marathons and ekidens and the relaxation of advertising regulations. Elimination of these restrictions will make it easier for races to secure sufficient sponsorship funds.

Another of Rikuren's new policies is the introduction of mandatory drug testing for all athletes setting Japanese national records in sports included in the Olympics. Under previous rules such testing was not obligatory. Rikuren has also modified its financial support system for Japanese runners, reducing the number of C-rank athletes from 68 to 40 but basing support criteria on potential development rather than purely on performance times.

A surprising change included in the announcement is that the 2010 Tokyo Marathon will take place on Feb. 28. The event's first two runnings were both held on the third Sunday of February, but for the upcoming third edition in 2009 the date was changed to March 22. The switch back to February has raised concerns about the Tokyo Marathon's organizational health, but Rikuren officials claimed that the race's date would remain as the fourth Sunday of February for the forseeable future.

Rikuren also announced that with the termination of the Tokyo International Women's Marathon following its 30th edition this past November, the new Yokohama International Women's Marathon will hold its first running on Nov. 15, the same date Tokyo International would have been held.

Lastly, Rikuren revealed that the 2009 National Track and Field Championships, which will double as the official selection event for the 2009 Berlin World Track and Field Championships, will be held June 25-28 at the Hiroshima Koiki Koen Track and Field Grounds in Hiroshima. Officials said they are considering a proposal to open the Championships to include foreign athletes based in Japan.
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Most-Read This Week

CR Holder Teruki Shimada Returns to Launceston Half - Preview and Streaming

Last year's McGrath Launceston Running Festival Peppers Silo Half Marathon in Tasmania, Australia shaped out into a great Australia vs. Japan dual meet , with Jessica Stenson outrunning Yumi Yoshikawa to take the women's title in a 1:09:51 CR, and Teikyo University school record holder Teruki Shimada executing a tactically brilliant race to drop Isaac Heyne , then-NR holder Brett Robinson , and Teikyo teammate Jinya Ozaki for the win in 1:01:12, just a second off the Australian all-comers record. Marathon NR holder Andy Buchanan took that record down to 1:01:08 at the Gold Coast Half a month later, but its chances of surviving this weekend aren't looking good. Shimada leads last year's top 4 back to Launceston this year, and there's a lot of tough new competition. 2025 National Corporate Half winner Tsubasa Ichiyama , Australia's Haftu Strintzos , new Teikyo record holder Yuta Asakawa and American Ethan Shuley have all run faster that Buchanan's rec...
Post a Comment
Read more

Murayama and Sasaki Making U.S. Debut at New York Mini 10 km

Every year since 2012 that there's been a United Airlines NYC Half , JRN has partnered with the NYRR and November's Ageo City Half Marathon to bring two top-tier collegiate Japanese men to the NYC Half for what's usually been their international debuts. For years we've wanted to extend that program to include top collegiate women, but that has always faced 2 problems. For one, while the half marathon distance is the main focus for Japanese collegiate men due to the stage lengths at the Hakone Ekiden, few collegiate women run it. Those that do run the National University Women's Half Marathon in Matsue, held the same day as the NYC Half. This year, though, we're finally making it happen in a slightly different way. Amisa Murayama and Nazuki Sasaki of 2025 Mt. Fuji Women's Ekiden national collegiate championship runner-up Tohoku Fukushi University are joining the field for the NYRR's Mastercard New York Mini 10 km on June 6. After running an 18:14 CR ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Some Reflections on the Ekiden

by Brett Larner This ekiden season I've had a few thoughts kicking around, and watching this week's Hakone Ekiden a few of them became clearer.  These are still in progress, but at the moment this is what I'm thinking in terms of running as a spectator sport and about the quality of Japanese men's distance running right now. Quality: Japanese men's running is coming up very, very quickly.  I was in the lead car at November's Ageo City Half Marathon , where 18 men, 17 of them university runners, broke 63 minutes.  As it was going on we all thought it was a slow race because there were so many people running that pace all the way, no separation at all in the mass of the pack. See the JRN header photo above, taken just past halfway.  That's pretty unusual in Japan, especially at the university level; generally you'll get a handful of guys who run an aggressive pace and a mass running dead on a safe pace, 3:00/km in a half marathon, for example. Th...
18 comments
Read more