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Sasaki and Suzuki Win Hakodate Half Marathon

by Brett Larner

Sumiko Suzuki (Team Hokuren) and Satoru Sasaki (Team Asahi Kasei), teammates of Daegu World Championships marathon top finishers Yukiko Akaba (Team Hokuren) and Hiroyuki Horibata (Team Asahi Kasei), took their first victories at the mid-season Hakodate Half Marathon in cool conditions on Sept. 25.  Suzuki ran with little challenge, while Sasaki prevailed by only one second in a sprint finish against Norihiro Nomiya (Team Toyota).  A short distance back from the lead pair of men were former marathon national record holder Atsushi Fujita (Team Fujitsu) and, in his final tuneup for next month's Chicago Marathon, 5000 m and 30 km national record holder Takayuki Matsumiya (Team Konica Minolta).

2011 Hakodate Half Marathon
Hakodate, Hokkaido, 9/25/11

Women
1. Sumiko Suzuki (Team Hokuren) - 1:13:48
2. Yui Ouchi (Team Noritz) - 1:16:16
3. Miya Nishio (Team Toyota Jidoshokki) - 1:16:18
4. Ayumi Nakayama (Team Yamada Denki) - 1:17:30
5. Tomoko Tamamushi (Harriers AC) - 1:21:29

Men
1. Satoru Sasaki (Team Asahi Kasei) - 1:03:18
2. Norihiro Nomiya (Team Toyota) - 1:03:19
3. Atsushi Fujita (Team Fujitsu) - 1:03:29
4. Takayuki Matsumiya (Team Konica Minolta) - 1:03:40
5. Taichi Takase (Komazawa Univ.) - 1:04:18

(c) 2011 Brett Larner
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