Kinukawa Again With 31:10.02 For All-Time Japanese #4 at Abashiri 10000 m

by Brett Larner

Ten days after staging a big comeback with a 15:09.96 national 5000 m title, the all-time sixth-best by a Japanese woman, Megumi Kinukawa (Team Mizuno) did it again, running a solo 31:10.02 at the June 22 Hokuren Distance Challenge Abashiri Meet 10000 m to become the all-time fourth-fastest Japanese woman over the distance. More impressive than her time, which cleared the World Championships A-standard by over 30 seconds and makes a double in Daegu very likely, was the way she paced the race. After a 15:45 first half Kinukawa gradually ratcheted up her pace, negative splitting with a 15:25 second half which included 9:09 for the final 3000 m and a superb 2:58 final km. Although rain shortly before the race helped to lower temperatures, conditions at the finish were still a less-than-ideal 20 degrees with 81% humidity. In light of this and her conservative first half it's exciting to consider what might be in store for Kinukawa against a more competitive, aggressive field like that she'll face in Daegu.

With Kinukawa's nearest competition over a minute behind there was little else noteworthy in the race, but roughly half the field recorded new PB marks. The same was true in the A-heat of the men's 5000 m, won by Kenyan John Thuo (Team Toyota) in 13:15.53. Six of the top ten ran new PBs, among them first-year Kenta Murayama (Komazawa Univ.), best known for his 28:23.18 as a high school senior last fall, and Kazuki Onishi (Team Kanebo), the lesser-known identical twin of 2010's top Japanese 10000 m and half-marathon runner Tomoya Onishi (Team Asahi Kasei).

The Hokuren Distance Challenge continues on Saturday in Fukagawa, Hokkaido.

2011 Hokuren Distance Challenge Abashiri Meet

Abashiri, Hokkaido, 6/22/11

click here for complete results

Women's 10000 m

1. Megumi Kinukawa (Team Mizuno) - 31:10.02 - PB

2. Yoko Miyauchi (Team Kyocera) - 32:15.09

3. Hiroko Shoi (Team Nihon ChemiCon) - 32:17.39 - PB

4. Hiroko Miyauchi (Team Kyocera) - 32:23.29

5. Rei Ohara (Team Tenmaya) - 32:50.50

6. Hitomi Nakamura (Team Panasonic) - 32:50.75 - PB

7. Ayumi Sakaida (Team Daihatsu) - 32:59.09 - PB

8. Yuka Hakoyama (Team Wacoal) - 33:13.40

9. Asami Kato (Team Panasonic) - 33:16.21 - PB

10. Shiori Kakizaki (Team Wacoal) - 33:26.50 - debut

Men's 5000 m - Heat A

1. John Thuo (Keyna/Team Toyota) - 13:15.53 - PB

2. Edward Waweru (Kenya/Team NTN) - 13:18.94

3. Daisuke Shimizu (Team Kanebo) - 13:38.42 - PB

4. Assefe Fekele (Ethiopia/Team Kanebo) - 13:40.98 - PB

5. James Rungar (Kenya/Team Toyota) - 13:41.41

6. Kenta Matsumoto (Team Toyota) - 13:43.76 - PB

7. Kazuharu Takai (Team Kyudenko) - 13:46.78

8. Kenta Murayama (Komazawa Univ.) - 13:47.19 - PB

9. Kazuki Onishi (Team Kanebo) - 13:48.82 - PB

10. Kazuki Tomaru (Team Toyota) - 13:50.57

19-Yr-Old Munakata Breaks Miura's U20 NR to Win Ageo City Half Marathon

The Ageo City Half Marathon is always big, the main race that the coaches of Hakone Ekiden-bound university men's teams use for firming up their entry rosters for the big show. That makes what's basically an idyllic small town race into one of the world's great road races, with depth unmatched anywhere. One of the top-tier people on the start list at 1:02:07, Kodai Miyaoka (Hosei Univ.) took the race out fast, but the entire pack was keying off the fastest man in the race, Reishi Yoshida (Chuo Gakuin Univ.), 1:00:31. Yoshida reeled Miyaoka in before 5 km and kept things steady in the low-1:01 range, wearing down the lead group to around 10 including his CGU teammate Taisei Ichikawa , a quartet from Izumo and National University Ekiden runner-up Komazawa University , 2 runners from local Daito Bunka University , 2:07:54 marathoner Atsumi Ashiwa (Honda), and Australian Ed Goddard . Right after 15 km Komazawa went into action, Yudai Kiyama , Hibiki Murakami and Haru Tanin

Ageo City Half Marathon Preview and Streaming

This weekend's big race is the Ageo City Half Marathon , the next stop on the collegiate men's circuit. Most of the universities bound for the Jan. 2-3 Hakone Ekiden use Ageo to thin down the list of contenders for their final Hakone rosters, and with JRN's development program that sends the first two Japanese collegiate finishers in Ageo to the United Airlines NYC Half every year a lot of coaches put in some of their A-listers too. That gives Ageo legendary depth and fast front-end speed, with a 1:00:47 course record last year from Kenyan corporate leaguer Paul Kuira (JR Higashi Nihon) and the top 26 all clearing 63 minutes. Since a lot of programs just enter everybody on their rosters you never really know who on the entry list is actually going to show up, but if even a quarter of the people at the top end of this year's list run it'll be a great race, even if conditions are looking likely to be a bit warmer than ideal. Chuo Gakuin University 's Reishi Yoshi

10000 m NR Attempt In the Works Saturday at Hachioji Long Distance - Streaming and Preview

There are a bunch of other time trial meets this weekend and next, but Saturday's Hachioji Long Distance is the last big meet for Japanese men, 8 heats of Wavelight-paced 10000 m finely graded from target times of 28:50 down to 26:59 for the fastest heat. Heat 6 at 17:55 local time is effectively the B-race, with 35 Japan-based Kenyans targeting 27:10 at the front end, and in a lot of cases a spot on their teams at the New Year Ekiden national championship on Jan. 1. Corporate teams are only allowed to field one non-Japanese athlete in the New Year Ekiden, and only on its shortest stage, and getting to that has a big impact on African athletes' contracts and renewal prospects. Toyota Boshoku , Yasukawa Denki , Chugoku Denryoku , Aisan Kogyo , JR Higashi Nihon , Subaru and 2024 national champion Toyota are all fielding two Kenyans, and Aichi Seiko three. For people like Toyota's Felix Korir and Samuel Kibathi , getting as close to the 27:10 target time as they can and

japan running news

Search This Blog