Skip to main content

Mok Ying Ren Runs Singaporean Men's 5000 m NR at Tokai Univ. Time Trials



by Brett Larner

Singaporean medical student and half-marathon national record holder Mok Ying Ren travelled to Japan this weekend to run in the May 28 Tokai University Time Trials meet in Kanagawa, south of Tokyo, with the aim of breaking the old Singaporean men's 5000 m national record of 14:57.61. In rainy conditions Ren succeeded in his goal, patiently following the advice of his training partner Jason Lawrence to start at the back of the field and progressively move up. Ren executed the plan perfectly and easily achieved his mark with a new national record of 14:51.09. "I'm so happy today," Ren said afterwards. "This year we did three 5000 m races. The first one was 15:17, then 15:06, and today 14:51. Jason organized this race in Japan because Japanese [meets] are known to have many heats and many people in one heat and they all run about the same time. So today I hoped to follow when the race started and hoped to catch them one by one, and then hopefully a new Singapore national record. I think it went as planned."

Top-ranked university man Akinobu Murasawa (Tokai Univ.) led the heat with a solo 14:05.12 before returning shortly afterwards with a 3:53.57 for 1500 m against teammate and 2011 Kanto region 10000 m champion Tsubasa Hayakawa (Tokai Univ.) who won in 3:53.11.


Tokai University Time Trials
Tokai Univ., Kanagawa, 5/28/11
Men's 5000 m Heat 6
1. Akinobu Murasawa (Tokai Univ.) - 14:05.12
2. Hisanori Nonaka (Tokai Univ.) - 14:36.25
3. Hiroyuki Ishikawa (Tokai Univ.) - 14:40.24
4. Ryo Koizumi (Tokai Univ.) - 14:48.03
5. Mok Ying Ren (Singapore) - 14:51.09 - NR

(c) 2011 Brett Larner
all rights reserved

Comments

Anonymous said…
Thanks for taking the time out to write about this.

Fantastic achievement for a medical student, and in a country where sports in hardly a priority.
Anonymous said…
and major credit to Jason Lawrence too, who must've played a big role in arranging the whole thing.
TokyoRacer said…
That's terrific. Congratulations, Mok!

Most-Read This Week

Everything You Need to Know About the 2026 Hakone Ekiden

The Hakone Ekiden is the world's biggest road race, 2 days of road relay action with Japan's 20 best university teams racing 10 half marathon-scale legs from central Tokyo to the mountains east of Mount Fuji and back. The level just keeps going higher and higher , hitting the point this year where there are teams with 10-runner averages of 13:33.10 for 5000 m, 27:55.98 for 10000 m, and 1:01:20 for the half marathon. It's never been better, and with great weather in the forecast it's safe to say this could be one of the best races in Hakone's 102-year history, especially on Day One. If you've seen it then you know NTV's live broadcast is the best sports broadcast in the world, with the pre-race show kicking off at 7:00 a.m. Japan time on the 2nd and 3rd and the race starting at 8:00 a.m. sharp. If you've got a VPN you should be able to watch it on TVer starting at 7:50 a.m. on the 2nd , and again at 7:50 a.m. on the 3rd . There's even a 2-hour high...

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...

Kawauchi Wins Inaugural Kawauchi Half Marathon

http://www.minyu-net.com/sports/running/FM20160501-070419.php translated by Brett Larner 川内優輝ロード pic.twitter.com/rEJk7CQPFV — みとっぽ (黒) (@mitoppo_tmyk) April 30, 2016 Yuki Kawauchi Road in Kawauchi, Fukushima Held to inspire former residents to return to the area after the nearby TEPCO Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant accident five years ago, the village of Kawauchi held the first " Kawauchi no Sato Kaeru Half Marathon - From Reconstruction to Creation " on April 30.  The course started and finished at the village heliport.  1188 runners from across the country gathered to celebrate the village's revival as they ran through its springtime streets. The event's organizing committee was made up of local government and board of education members with support from the Fukushima Minyu Newspaper and other sponsors.  The race's purpose was to transmit the vitality and charm of the reconstructing Kawauchi village to the rest of the nation in hopes of helpin...