Skip to main content

Still in Shock From Car Accident, Mogusu Has No Plans to Restart His Running

http://www.asahi.com/sports/update/0313/TKY200903130293.html
http://www.nikkansports.com/sports/news/p-sp-tp0-20090314-470948.html

translated and edited by Brett Larner

Hakone Ekiden star Mekubo Mogusu (22) and Yamanashi Gakuin University head coach Masahito Ueda held a press conference at the school's Kofu campus on Mar. 13 to discuss the details of the car accident in which Mogusu was involved last month in his native Kenya. On Feb. 9 Mogusu was driving to a practice ground when he struck an oncoming vehicle head-on while pulling out to pass a parked car. Mogusu and fellow runners Daniel Gitau (Nihon Univ.) and Cosmas Ondiba (Yamanashi Gakuin Univ.) were uninjured, but Team Aidem coach Sho Kimura (26), riding in the front passenger seat, struck his head hard and fell unconscious. Kimura is now in a hospital in Wakayama Prefecture where he has regained consciousness and is able to respond to his name.

Mogusu is still suffering from the shock of the accident and is unable to train. Scheduled to join Team Aidem next month following his graduation, he apologized at the press conference, saying, "I can't even think about running right now. Coach Kimura recovering even a day earlier means more to me than that. I am truly sorry."

Comments

Most-Read This Week

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."...

Nat'l University Ekiden Updates Here

Looks like I just went over my update limit on Twitter - sorry, it's the first time I've tried to use it for this. I'll look for another option next time. In the meantime I'll add updates to the comments below. Not sure if that has a max too but I guess we'll find out. Update: Part one of the Nationals commentary can be found here .

Keita Satoh Running New Balance Fifth Avenue Mile

1500 m U20 NR holder Keita Satoh (Nike Swoosh TC) is running this weekend's New Balance Fifth Avenue Mile , the first time that a Japanese man has been invited in the race's 45-year history. In university Sato had to change focus away from middle distance to the half marathon-scale lengths of the Hakone Ekiden stages, but since graduating in March and relocating to Flagstaff he has refocused on the 1500 m, going from 3:43.19 in April in his first 1500 m in almost 4 years to 3:38.30 over the course of 5 races. Fifth Avenue will be his last race before heading back to Japan for one more track 1500 m and some down time. Men's entries with best 1500 m times in last 3 years: Stefan Nillessen (NED) - 3:29.23 (2025) Flavien Szot (FRA) - 3:30.74 (2025) Oliver Hoare (AUS) - 3:31.07 (2024) Jake Heyward (GBR) - 3:31.18 (2026) Titouan Le Grix (FRA) - 3:31.46 (2026) Romain Mornet (FRA) - 3:31.62 (2025) Adam Spencer (AUS) - 3:31.83 (2026) Pieter Sisk (BEL) - 3:31.85 (2025) Gary Martin (...