Yuki Sato All-Time Japanese #2 for 3000 m at Memorial Leon Buyle (updated with video)

by Brett Larner

Unstoppably talented in university, Yuki Sato (Team Nissin Shokuhin) has had an off-and-on career since joining the corporate world last year. Last year he ran 3 seconds off the Japanese national record for 10000 m to become the all-time #3 Japanese man at that distance, but then went on to miss out on qualifying for the Berlin World Championships. On July 3rd this year he pulled off one of his best accomplishments so far, running 7:44.63 for 3000 m at the Memorial Leon Buyle meet in Belgium. Sato finished 3rd behind Kenyans John Kemboi Cheruiyot and Yusef Biwott, the top two 3000 m runners thus far in 2010. His time, a PB by 9 seconds, was less than 3 seconds off Toshinari Takaoka's 11 year-old national record of 7:41.87 and shows that he is in excellent form as he kicks off a summer stint on the European circuit. A similar improvement over 5000 m would put Sato 1 second off the relatively weak Japanese national record of 13:13.20, a mark which may well fall when Sato runs the 5000 m at next weekend's KBC Nacht meet.

Sato's performance led those of the large contingent of Japanese athletes at the Memorial Leon Buyle meet, but there were few other noteworthy results. Sato's teammate Satoru Kitamura (Team Nissin Shokuhin) also broke the 8 minute mark but finished only 10th in 7:59.81, a sizeable PB nevertheless. Multiple 1500 m national champion Mika Yoshikawa (Team Panasonic) was 3rd in the women's 1500 m in 4:16.14, while women's 3000 m SC national record holder Minori Hayakari (Kyoto Koka AC) was 8th in the same heat.

2010 Memorial Leon Buyle Results
click here for complete results
Men's 3000 m
1. John Kemboi Cheruiyot (Kenya) 7:40.11
2. Yusef Biwott (Kenya) - 7:40.49
3. Yuki Sato (Team Nissin Shokuhin) - 7:44.63 - PB
4. Nathan Lagat (Kenya) - 7:48.03
5. Philipp Pflieger (Germany) - 7:55.99 - PB
-----
10. Satoru Kitamura (Team Nissin Shokuhin) - 7:59.81 - PB
11. Takuya Ishikawa (Team Chugoku Denryoku) - 8:03.84 - PB
15. Hiroyoshi Umegae (Team NTN) - 8:13.84

Women's 1500 m
1. Mari Jarvehpaa (Finland) - 4:13.44
2. Gabriele Anderson (USA) - 4:15.71
3. Mika Yoshikawa (Team Panasonic) - 4:16.14
-----
8. Minori Hayakari (Kyoto Koka AC) - 4:19.38

Men's 1500 m A-heat
1. Mark Matusak (USA) - 3:40.41
2. Andreas Vojta (Austria) - 3:40.79
3. Hassan Khallouki (Morocco) - 3:40.93
-----
13. Fumikazu Kobayashi (Team NTN) - 3:44.29
15. Yasunori Murakami (Team Fujitsu) - 3:49.82

Men's 1500 m B-heat
1. Ian Cronin (USA) - 3:43.81
2. Brian Cantero (France) - 3:44.17
3. Jordan Horn (USA) - 3:44.40
-----
6. Masahiro Takaya (Japan) - 3:44.68
12. Hiroshi Ino (Japan) - 3:55.02

Men's 800 m A-heat
1. Jonathan Johnson (USA) - 1:46.99
2. Azzedine Boudjemaa - 1:47.11
3. Prince Mumba - 1:47.15
-----
5. Masato Yokota (Team Fujitsu) - 1:47.56

Men's 800 m B-heat
1. Abdelmajid Touil (Algeria) - 1:49.07
2. Ali Hamid (Belgium) - 1:49.26
3. Matthias Stubbe (Belgium) - 1:49.69
-----
6. Hikaru Miyazaki (Japan) - 1:50.43

(c) 2010 Brett Larner
all rights reserved

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