Skip to main content

Toyo's Kashiwabara Out of National Men's Ekiden

http://hochi.yomiuri.co.jp/sports/etc/news/20110123-OHT1T00010.htm

translated by Brett Larner

Three-time Hakone Ekiden Fifth Stage winner Ryuji Kashiwabara (3rd yr., Toyo Univ.) has withdrawn from his planned run for the Fukushima Prefecture team at today's National Interprefectural Men's Ekiden in Hiroshima due to pain in his right knee. If he recovers in time, his next target race will be the 10 km race at the Feb. 26 Fukuoka International XC Meet.

Kashiwabara was scheduled to run the 8.5 km Third Stage, but after discussion between the Toyo and Fukushima Prefecture teams it was decided that he would be withdrawn. "If he ran in his current condition it would be a lot of unnecessary pressure, so for his own sake we pulled him," explained Toyo head coach Toshiyuki Sakai, 34. He went on to say that while Kashiwabara is currently experiencing pain in his right knee and left heel, the ailments are not serious and they have focused on him being ready for the Fukuoka International XC Meet in one month's time.

Competing off the roads on the rough surfaces and hills of a cross-country course is a point of pride for Hakone's "God of the Mountain." The Fukuoka International XC Meet is a selection race for March's World XC Championships in Spain. It may well become the staging ground for Kashiwabara's big step up to take on the world.

Translator's note: Kashiwabara's run against Akinobu Murasawa (Tokai Univ.) and Yoichiro Akiyama (Team Honda) on the Third Stage was one of the highlights of last year's Interprefectural Ekiden. Kashiwabara went on to spend most of 2010 injured but despite being less than 100% still won this year's Hakone Ekiden Fifth Stage in a time faster than any other athlete has ever run.
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Most-Read This Week

Japan Post Holds Off Sekisui Kagaku to Win Queens Ekiden National Title

  Japan Post  was back on top at the Queens Ekiden corporate women's national championships Sunday in Sendai, holding off last year's winner Sekisui Kagaku  over the second half of a race that came as close as 1 second to take 1st with a final margin of victory of 27 seconds. Sekisui Kagaku was out fast with a win on the 7.0 km opening leg by Erika Tanoura  and a new CR for the 12:56 second leg by Yuma Yamamoto , 17 seconds better than her own CR from last year. Last year's 4th-placer Shiseido  briefly led on the 10.6 km third leg with an excellent 33:17 stage win from Rino Goshima , but behind her Japan Post's Ririka Hironaka  returned from her latest injury problems to pass Sekisui Kagaku's Sayaka Sato  and hand off 6 seconds ahead. New recruit Caroline Kariba  ran Shiseido down on the 3.6 km fourth leg and put Japan Post 22 seconds ahead of Sekisui Kagaku, but a duel of marathoners between JP's  Ayuko Suzuki  and Sekisui's Hitomi Niiy...
Post a Comment
Read more

Olympian Hagitani Takes 10 Minutes Off Yodogawa Kanpei Half Marathon CR

At the Yodogawa Kanpei Half Marathon in Hirakata, Osaka on Dec. 15, Kaede Hagitani , 24, took over 10 minutes off the women's course record to win in 1:10:37. Hagitani ran the 5000 m at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics and is targeting the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics. Men's winner Koki Hosokawa , 31, broke his own CR with a 1:08:03 to win for the 2nd year in a row. In 5˚ temperatures the race set off along the Yodogawa river. Competing as a first step in her comeback after having left the sport post-Olympics, Hagitani had a spectacular record-breaking run that earned her a permanent invitation. "I usually train alone, so I never feel like I'm really on except in a race like this," she said. "The male runners in the race helped me have a good one." When asked why she ran a local race like the Kanpei Half when everyone else there was just a regular amateur Hagitani laughed and said, "My parents live near here." At the Tokyo Olympics Hagitani broke her 5000...
Post a Comment
Read more

2023 Champion Kamimura Gakuen Girls Ready for Sunday's National High School Ekiden

Ahead of the Dec. 22 National High School Ekiden in Kyoto, the 2023 national champion Kamimura Gakuen H.S. girls held an open practice session for the media. 2023 was Kamimura Gakuen's only 2nd national title ever. Can it make it two in a row? The Kamimura Gakuen girls won the Nov. 2 Kagoshima Prefecture High School Ekiden, its 9th-straight win and 31st victory overall in the prefectural qualifying race for Nationals. 3rd on her stage at Nationals last year as part of the winning team, Hina Ogura summed up this year's lineup. "There's no really dominant star runner this year, but each person is aware of their position on the team and working together to share in everyone playing leading roles." Sakine Noguchi ran the Second Stage at Nationals last year. "I think we've improved our stamina," she said, "so I hope that we can get the best possible results and all finish with a smile." Handling the First Stage last year, Rin Setoguchi said,...
Post a Comment
Read more