Skip to main content

WC Silver Medalist Ozaki, '09 NYC Champ Tulu Lead Yokohama Int'l Women's Marathon Elites

http://www.asahi.com/sports/spo/TKY201101250131.html
http://www.sanspo.com/sports/news/110124/spg1101241747004-n1.htm
http://www.jiji.com/jc/c?g=spo_30&k=2011012400672

translated and edited by Brett Larner

On Jan. 24 Rikuren announced the domestic and overseas elite fields for the second running of the Yokohama International Women's Marathon, scheduled for Feb. 20. The domestic field of six includes 2009 World Championships marathon silver medalist Yoshimi Ozaki (Team Daiichi Seimei) and 2010 Nagoya International Women's Marathon 5th place finisher Mayumi Fujita (Team Juhachi Ginko. The foreign field of five is led by 2009 New York City Marathon winner Derartu Tulu (Ethiopia), who holds a marathon best of 2:23:30. 2004 Athens Olympics marathoner Naoko Sakamoto (Team Tenmaya) is entered in the general division.

As a selection race for August's World Championships in Daegu, Korea, the top Japanese woman in Yokohama will earn a place on the team provided she runs under 2:26 on the flatter new course starting and finishing at Yokohama's Yamashita Park. To aid in achieving this time goal Rikuren will employ female pacemakers, including 2010 Sanyo Women's Half Marathon winner Shoko Mori (Team Otsuka Seiyaku). According to Rikuren Long Distance and Road Racing Special Committee member Toshio Kiuchi, the pacemakers will go out targeting a time faster than 2:25.

2011 Yokohama International Women's Marathon Elite Field
Yoshimi Ozaki (Team Daiichi Seimei) - 2:23:30
Derartu Tulu (Ethiopia) - 2:23:30
Azalech Masresha (Ethiopia) - 2:25:34
Marisa Barros (Portugal) - 2:25:44
Alevtina Ivanonva (Russia) - 2:26:38
Karolina Jarzynska (Poland) - 2:29:10
Mayumi Fujita (Team Juhachi Ginko) - 2:29:36
Kaori Yoshida (Amino Vital AC) - 2:29:45
Remi Nakazato (Team Daihatsu) - 2:34:29
Kaoru Nagao (Team Universal Ent.) - debut - 1:10:45
Yuka Izumi (Team Tenmaya) - debut - 1:10:58

Comments

Most-Read This Week

Federation Tells World Championships Marathoner Horibata To Go On Diet

http://hochi.yomiuri.co.jp/sports/etc/news/20110307-OHT1T00258.htm translated by Brett Larner Having made the 2011 World Championships marathon team by running a PB of 2:09:25 to come in 3rd overall and as the top Japanese finisher at the Mar. 6 Lake Biwa Mainichi Marathon, Hiroyuki Horibata (24, Team Asahi Kasei), talked to the media at Osaka Airport on Mar. 7. Following Sunday's race Rikuren director Keisuke Sawaki , 67, told Horibata, "Let's cut things down a bit until the World Championships," directing him to go on a diet. The 189 cm Horibata weighs 72 kg [~6'3", 160 lbs]. When he joined Team Asahi Kasei in 2005 at age 18 he weighed 65 kg, and this weight is still generally listed on his profile at races and in the media. "For some reason it never changes," he said with a grin. His coach Takeshi Soh , 58, commented, "If he was hungrier for glory his world would change completely," slapping the 'heavyweight division runner...

World Marathon Majors Japanese Entries

We're back from a short summer break. A week and a half out from the first race of the season's four World Marathon Majors races, here's a look at Japanese athletes scheduled to run. Everything right now is about qualifying for the MGC Race, the official trials race for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics to be held in the fall of 2027 in Nagoya. The JAAF makes no mistake about wanting to keep its top people racing domestically where it can get a share of revenue from the TV broadcast and race operations, so anyone who decides to race overseas has to do it in a WA platinum label race and hit either 2:06:30 or 2:23:30, regardless of place, course or weather if they want to make the trials. At the same time concessions are make for domestic races, like for example the late-August Hokkaido Marathon where up to 3 men and 3 women can qualify if they go 2:12:00 or 2:32:00. As a result, you get things like last year where amateur runner Yudai Fukuda made the trials by finishing 3rd Jap...

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 .