Skip to main content

Yokota Tops Japanese Results at KBC Nacht

by Brett Larner

Men's 800 m national record holder Masato Yokota (Team Fujitsu) had the best result of the day for the Japanese contingent at this year's KBC Nacht meet in Heusden-Zolder, Belgium on July 10. Less than half a second off his national record of 1:46:16, Yokota won the 800 m in 1:46.63 by the narrowest of margins over South African Jonas Windy. Among the other Japanese participants in the meet, Yuki Sato (Team Nissin Shokuhin) was perhaps the most disappointing as he fell well short in his attempt on the Japanese 5000 m national record, running only 13:27.36 for 9th. A summary of results is included below.

2010 KBC Nacht - Top Results
Men's 800 m
1. Masato Yokota (Team Fujitsu) - 1:46.63
2. Jonas Windy (South Africa) - 1:46.64
3. Ludolph Siren (Germany) - 1:47.29

Men's 1500 m B-heat
1. Mthobisi Baloyi (South Africa) - 3:41.58
2. Gregory Beugnet (France) - 3:31.99
3. Niels Verwer (Netherlands) - 3:42.75
-----
4. Yasunori Murakami (Team Fujitsu) - 3:42.99
10. Masahiro Takaya (Japan) - 4:02.62

Men's 5000 m
1. Jacob Cheshari (Kenya) - 12:59.72
2. Josphat Menjo (Kenya) - 13:00.67
3. Leonard Komon (Kenya) - 13:17.32
-----
9. Yuki Sato (Team Nissin Shokuhin) - 13:27.36

Men's 5000 m B-heat
1. Mert Girmalegese (Turkey) - 13:34.73
2. Kemal Koyuncu (Tukey) - 13:35.72
3. Scott Bauhs (U.S.A.) - 13:36.77
-----
7. Satoru Kitamura (Team Nissin Shokuhin) - 13:43.99
15. Takuya Ishikawa (Team Chugoku Denryoku) - 14:00.84

Men's Javelin
1. Jakub Vadeljch (Czech Rep.) - 78.57
2. Peter Esenwin (Germany) - 76.50
3. Tom Goyvaerts (Belgium) - 76.46
-----
6. Kazuki Yamamoto (Japan) - 72.28

(c) 2010 Brett Larner
all rights reserved

Comments

Anonymous said…
Even though the winning time was under 13, the conditions were not ideal for a super fast time. It was windy, warm and slightly dusty from the wind that created a slight headwind on the back straight.

That was my first time to watch Mr. Sato run in person. His stride is very efficient. I think that his mechanics are actually much better for the marathon.
Brett Larner said…
Thanks for the firsthand report. Having watched Sato on the roads in Hakone and post-university I agree, he has a good future in the marathon. I think it'll be a few years though as he focuses on the track national records.

Most-Read This Week

Chepkirui Over Sato Again to Win 2nd-Straight Nagoya Women's Marathon, Chen Breaks Malaysian NR (updated)

This year's Nagoya Women's Marathon felt like a changing of the guard, with some the bigger domestic names over the last few years fading early and a lot of newer faces stepping up with quality debuts or second marathons. The front group was set to be paced for 2:20 flat with the 2nd group at 2:23:30 to hit the auto-qualifying time for the 2027 MGC Race, Japan's L.A. Olympics marathon trials race in Nagoya. Up front things went out OK, but after a 33:10 split at 10 km Ayuko Suzuki , 2:21:22 here 2 years ago, lost touch, ultimately finishing 23rd in 2:33:28. Windy conditions started to play with pacers' ability to keep things steady and the pace slowed majorly over the next 10 km, but even with a 34:05 second 10 km there were big-name casualties. 2024 Nagoya winner Yuka Ando was next to drop, ending up 17th in 2:30:32. NR holder Honami Maeda was next, followed quickly by Bahraini Kenyan Eunice Chumba and debuting Wakana Kabasawa . Maeda faded to 21st in 2:31:21, whil...

Nagoya Women's Marathon Preview and Streaming (updated)

Japan's winter marathon season of 6 major races in 7-straight weekends wraps up Sunday with the world's largest women-only marathon, the Nagoya Women's Marathon . The weather is looking pretty good, 6˚ at the start rising to 10˚ by the finish and sunny skies, but a moderate 7 m/s NW wind means a headwind finish that might impact the potential for some fast times. Official streaming kicks off at 9:00 a.m. local time. Live results will be here . Sheila Chepkirui won last year in 2:20:40, breaking away from Sayaka Sato and Eunice Chebichii Chumba at 30 km and hanging on for the win. Sato negative split a 2:20:59 PB for 2nd, Chumba fading to 3rd in 2:21:36. All 3 are back this time, but they have pretty serious competition from Aynalem Desta , 2:17:37 in Amsterdam last fall, and Selly Chepyego Kaptich , 2:20:03 in Barcelona 2023. And of course, Japanese NR holder Honami Maeda . Maeda ran 2:18:59 at the Osaka International Women's Marathon in 2024 to make the Paris Oly...

How it Happened

Ancient History I went to Wesleyan University, where the legend of four-time Boston Marathon champ and Wes alum Bill Rodgers hung heavy over the cross-country team. Inspired by Koichi Morishita and Young-Cho Hwang’s duel at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics I ran my first marathon in 1993, qualifying for Boston ’94 where Bill was kind enough to sign a star-struck 20-year-old me’s bib number at the expo. Three years later I moved to Japan for grad school, and through a long string of coincidences I came across a teenaged kid named Yuki Kawauchi down at my neighborhood track. I never imagined he’d become what he is, but right from the start there was just something different about him. After his 2:08:37 breakthrough at the 2011 Tokyo Marathon he called me up and asked me to help him get into races abroad. He’d finished 3rd on the brutal downhill Sixth Stage at the Hakone Ekiden, and given how he’d run the hills in the last 6 km at Tokyo ’11 I thought he’d do well at Boston or New York. “I...