The Chugoku Denryoku men's corporate team has announced that team member Naoki Okamoto , 40, will retire in January. Born in May, 1984, Okamoto went to Tohaku J.H.S. and Yura Ikuei H.S. before enrolling at Meiji University . His 2nd year at Meiji he helped it make it through the Hakone Ekiden qualifying race for the first time in 14 years and ran Hakone at the end of that season in 2005. He went on to run it his 3rd and 4th years too, placing 6th on the First Stage and 9th on the highly competitive Second Stage. After graduating in 2007 he joined Chugoku Denryoku. He was a regular on its team at the New Year Ekiden, winning the Fifth Stage in 2010. But where he really made his name was the National Men's Ekiden, held every January in Hiroshima where Chugoku Denryoku is based. Running it 19 times, he passed a total of 134 competitors in his career there and came to be recognized as one of the event's icons. He also won its Seventh Stage in 2009. In the marathon, ...
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Current standings:
1-Waseda
2-Toyo
3-Chuo Gakuin
4-Meiji
5-Nihon
6-Komazawa
7-Tokai
Looks like Tokai will catch Komazawa.
200 m to go - Hiraga is safe. Yusuke Mita, one of Waseda's best guys, is next.
Meiji 3rd, 13 sec behind Toyo
Nihon 4th 14 sec behind Meiji
Chuo Gakuin 5th another 25 sec back
Tokai rounds out seeded bracket. Daichi Kogyo 7th just back from Tokai. Tokyo Nogyo and Yamanashi Gakuin in range too.
5th Stage - 11.6 km.
Aces: Mita (Waseda) and Chiba (Toyo) - currently 1-2. Both were great in Hakone this year.
Looks like Meiji's Yasuda is catching up to Mita. Mita running 3:00 pace even.
Nihon's Taniguchi moving up on Toyo's Chiba. Daiichi Kogyo likewise making up ground on Tokai for the last seeded spot.
Tokai takes Chuo Gakuin for 5th.
Taniguchi actually doesn't look very good, but if he and the 6th/7th leg guys hold his current position they've got it once Kenyan Gitau runs the anchor stage.
Taniguchi to 2nd.
Aces: Takabayashi (Komazawa), Marubayashi (Nihon)
1. Meiji
2. Nihon +34 sec
3. Waseda +22 sec
4. Toyo +30 sec
5. Tokai +7 sec
6. Daiichi Kogyo +45 sec
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7. Chuo Gakuin +2 sec
8. Yamanashi Gakuin + 20 sec
Takabayashi takes Tokyo Nogyo's Takayama for 10th.
Nihon has made up 7 sec on Meiji's lead.
Komazawa's Takabayashi 8:26 through 3 km.
Takabayashi 14:21 through 5k, Komazawa in 10th. Marubayashi losing ground to Watanabe - Nihon now 46 sec behind Meiji.
Takabayashi takes Chuo for 8th. About to take Chuo Gakuin too. Yamanashi Gakuin in 6th is in sight but probably not in range with just over 2 km left.
Waseda's runner is Kanzawa - my mistake.
Komazawa's Takabayashi into 7th past Chuo Gakuin - coach Oyagi is yelling at Takabayashi to take Yamanashi Gakuin. No chance, though.
7th stage: 11.9 km
Aces: Yokoyama (Aoyama Gakuin)
2. Toyo +1:04
3. Nihon +0:09
4. Waseda +0:05
5. Tokai +0:55
6. Yamanashi Gakuin +0:05
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7. Komazawa +0:33
8. Chuo Gakuin +0:25
9. Chuo +0:13
It's worth nothing that Nittai Univ. is not here because they could not run the qualifying race in June due to the ridiculous marijuana suspension scandal last spring.
Aoyama Gakuin's Yokoyama looking good - tryng to beat their seed of 15th.
Waseda's Maeda has completely fallen away from Nihon's Yokomatsu.
Aces:
Fukatsu (Komazawa)
Ozaki (Waseda)
Nakagawa (Yamanashi Gakuin)
Gitau (Nihon)
2. Toyo +1:04
3. Nihon +0:49
4. Waseda +0:32
5. Yamanashi Gakuin +0:28
6. Tokai +0:16
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7. Komazawa +0:04
8. Chuo +0:30
9. Chuo Gakuin +0:06
Daiichi Kogyo's anchor Kenyan Kariru is moving up from 10th.
Fukatsu into 5th.
Ozaki (Waseda) another 43 sec back in 4th.
Nakagawa has dropped Fukatsu. Chuo Gakuin's Kobayashi about 26 seconds behind Fukatsu - he might make 6th.
Waseda's Ozaki in big trouble in 4th - about to be caught by Yamanashi Gakuin's Nakagawa. Ozaki is holding his left side.
Toyo's Otsu in sight of 2nd place Meiji's Hosokawa with 3.5 km to go.
Toyo's anchor Otsu was the one who really broke Waseda in Hakone this year to make sure Toyo won.
Toyo 2nd in 5:24:39.
Meiji 3rd in 5:24:52 without top member Matsumoto (points to Mika for picking them)
5th - Yamanashi Gakuin - 5:26:05
6th - Chuo does it! - 5:26:26
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7th - Komazawa
8th - Chuo Gakuin
9th - Tokai
...and that's all she wrote.
I didn't realize Japan Running News has a twitter feed? If so will you put the address up?