japan running news

http://hochi.yomiuri.co.jp/sports/etc/news/20120930-OHT1T00281.htm translated by Brett Larner 2004 Athens Olympics women's marathon gold medalist and marathon national record holder Mizuki Noguchi  (Team Sysmex) ran at a half marathon in Lisbon on Sept. 30, finishing 4th in 1:12:20.  Having run her first marathon in four years at March's Nagoya Women's Marathon, the 34-year-old Noguchi ran the race as a training run with an eye toward making the team for next year's World Championships in Moscow.  Noguchi's coach Hisakazu Hirose  commented, "Her race showed that there are still some issues to work out, but as an indication of her condition at this stage I'd say it was OK."

by Brett Larner photo by Dr. Helmut Winter 2010 Tokyo Marathon winner and collegiate/debut marathon national record holder Masakazu Fujiwara (Team Honda) had a minor breakthrough at the 2012 Berlin Marathon, breaking 2:12 for the first time since his 2:08:12 marathon debut in 2003 to take 9th place, the first non-Kenyan finisher. Setting out at mid-2:08 pace, Fujiwara and 2:11 men Suehiro Ishikawa (Team Honda) and Atsushi Ikawa (Team Otsuka Seiyaku) ran together, fading off that seemingly reasonable pace as a group with each passing 5 km split even as the lead pack spearheaded by eventual winner Geoffrey Mutai (Kenya) accelerated. Ishikawa, who debuted in 2:11:14 at March's Lake Biwa Mainichi Marathon, briefly ran into trouble just before 30 km but quickly recovered. After 32 km it was Ikawa, coached by 2:06 man Takayuki Inubushi , who faded, 24 seconds behind Fujiwara and Ishikawa by 35 km. Just as Mutai was non-battling debuting 25 km world record holder Dennis Kim...

http://sankei.jp.msn.com/world/news/120929/chn12092920570005-n1.htm translated by Brett Larner On Sept. 29 China's Shanghai Metropolitan Sports Bureau announced the 17th running of the Shanghai Marathon on Dec. 2, with applications scheduled to open Oct. 6.  Noteworthy in the announcement was that Japanese corporation Toray, title sponsor since the Shanghai Marathon's second running, has been removed from the official race title, with eight other major Japanese companies including Japan Airlines and Uniqlo also having been taken off the sponsor list. On Sept. 11 the same organizers had scheduled a press conference to release the outline of the race but stopped midway to announce, "Due to the Japanese government's attitude toward the Senkaku Islands (a.k.a. Diaoyu Islands) situation it is unacceptable to have a Japanese company as our title sponsor," clearly indicating that their actions are motivated by anti-Japanese sentiment.  This year the race aims to h...

http://running.competitor.com/2012/09/news/stars-coming-out-for-rock-n-roll-portugal_59480 Marathon national record holder Mizuki Noguchi  (Team Sysmex) will line up for tomorrow's Rock 'n' Roll Portugal half marathon in Lisbon.  The year-leading half marathon time by a Japanese woman is 1:09:47 by Tomomi Tanaka  (Team Daiichi Seimei), set in winning March's National Corporate Half Marathon Championships.  No Japanese woman has broken 1:09 since Yukiko Akaba 's 1:08:50 win at the 2009 Sendai International Half Marathon. Noguchi's 2:19:12 course record at the Berlin Marathon will be under attack as well tomorrow by a group of top Ethiopians.   Yuri Kano  (Team Shiseido) will also be in the women's race, with a group of Japanese men including 2010 Tokyo Marathon winner Masakazu Fujiwara  (Team Honda) and 2:11 men Atsushi Ikawa  (Team Otsuka Seiyaku) and Suehiro Ishikawa  (Team Honda) in the men's race.  More information: http://iaaf....

http://www.jiji.com/jc/c?g=spo_30&k=2012092701007 translated by Brett Larner Yuri Kano  (Team Shiseido) and other top athletes running the Sept. 30 Berlin Marathon appeared at a press conference Sept. 27.  "In Berlin I want to get things off to a good start building toward my future marathons," she said of her ambitions.  Kano, 33, finished 7th in the 2009 Berlin World Championships marathon, going on the next year to win the 2010 Nagoya International Women's Marathon.  Of her training for this weekend's race she said, "Even though I wasn't feeling good I pushed through and did two months of altitude training."  She is hopeful of running a good time. Translator's note: Along with Kano, 2010 Tokyo Marathon winner Masakazu Fujiwara (Team Honda), 2:11 men Atsushi Ikawa  (Team Otsuka Seiyaku) and Suehiro Ishikawa (Team Honda) and others are scheduled to run Berlin.

http://www.shikoku-np.co.jp/kagawa_news/locality/20120920000139 translated by Brett Larner Having become outdated and too old for use, the Yashima Field track and field grounds in Takamatsu, Kagawa are scheduled to close at the end of October for a complete renovation and modernization.  A memorial event to commemorate the track's 59-year history is scheduled to take place at Yashima Field on Nov. 3.  The event will feature a talk on running form from 2010 Asian Games 400 mH bronze medalist Naohiro Kawakita and activities including the attending crowds forming human letters.  It is sure to be a memorable experience.  Demolition and construction work will begin in mid-November, and the new and improved facility is scheduled to open in 2016. The Kagawa prefectural government build Yashima Field for the 1953 National Sports Festival.  In 1983 the track was upgraded to an all-weather surface, and in 2008 the prefecture transferred ownership to the city. ...

http://sankei.jp.msn.com/region/news/120926/fks12092602030000-n1.htm translated by Brett Larner Under the leadership of director Toshio Katahira , the Fukushima Prefecture Track and Field Association made a formal request to the prefectural government on Sept. 25 to back a bid to host the 98th National Track and Field Championships in 2014.  Delivering his petition to lieutenant governor  Masao Uchibori , Director Katahira told him, "We want to show the whole country that even though we're in a tough situation because of the nuclear disaster, Fukushima is still alive and well."  The lieutenant governor responded, "We have to closely examine to what degree the prefecture can prioritize the Championships as we continue to deal with recovery efforts." In Olympic and World Championships years the National Championships serve as the selection race for the Japanese national team.  According to Fukushima Prefecture Track and Field Association officials...

http://news.ibc.co.jp/item_18091.html http://www.47news.jp/sports/localsports/2012/09/2_74.html translated and edited by Brett Larner Once again the streets of Ichinoseki were host to an international half marathon, the 31st running of the Ichinoseki Half Marathon.  A record 2313 runners including professional corporate league athletes and invited runners from abroad took part.  Due to ongoing reconstruction work within the city from last year's disasters this year's race featured a new course starting and ending at the Ichinoseki Civic Gymnasium.  Course record holder Mekubo Mogusu  (Kenya/Team Nissin Shokuhin) was the overall winner in the half marathon, running 1:02:15.   Eri Hayakawa  (Team Toto) won the women's race in 1:14:12, with her teammate Noriko Nakamura  (Team Toto) taking the women's 10 km in 34:48. Highlights of the race will be broadcast on IBC starting at 3:30 p.m. on Oct. 7.

http://www.chugoku-np.co.jp/sports/Sp201209220128.html translated by Brett Larner On the first day of competition at the National Corporate Track and Field Championships, Sept. 21 at Fukuoka's Hakatonomori Field, Paul Tanui  (Kenya/Team Kyudenko) won the men's 10000 m in 27:30.22  The top Japanese finisher, Chihiro Miyawaki  (Team Toyota), was 4th in 27:41.57, the fastest time ever by a Japanese runner at the Championships.   Sally Chepyego  (Kenya/Team Toyota) took the women's 10000 m in 31:33.76, with Yuriko Kobayashi  (Team Toyota Jidoshokki) 2nd, London Olympian Kayoko Fukushi (Team Wacoal) 3rd, and Ayumi Hagiwara  (Team Uniqlo) 4th in 32:00.73. Just 20, the unknown Hagiwara put on a show in the 10000 m.  Running for Uniqlo in just her second year out of high school, Hagiwara challenged national record holders Kobayashi and Fukushi throughout the race, ultimately finishing just behind them in 4th.  Just 155 cm, the diminutive new ...

by Brett Larner Just six days after winning his second marathon in three weeks , Yuki Kawauchi  (Saitama Pref.) did the unexpected and ran 3:50.51, a PB by six seconds, to win the 1500 m A-heat at the first Nittai University Time Trials Meet of the season.  "It wasn't hard at all today," Kawauchi told JRN after the race.  "It reinforced to me that Lydiard was right when he said that marathon training doesn't just give you better stamina but also improves your speed.  The mainstream approach right now is to work on speed, but I want to take the approach of working on distance.  Amateur runners have few opportunities to do high-quality speed training, and the risk of injury is much higher.  A lot of people also think that doing marathon training will make you slower, but if I can show them that that's not true I'll be very happy.  Next spring I'm going to target the 3:48 qualifying time for the National Track and Field Championships 1500 m." ...

http://www.coloradorunnermag.com/2012/09/22/lemoncello-aoyama-win-half-marathon/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+ColoradoRunner+%28Colorado+Runner%29 Mizuho Nasukawa  (Team Univ. Ent.) previously won the 2009 Tokyo Marathon and held the course record until this year.

by Brett Larner After winning the 2012 National Corporate Track and Field Championships 10000 m Friday night and her 5000 m heat Saturday, Kenyan Sally Chepyego  (Team Kyudenko) returned to Fukuoka's Hakatanomori Field Saturday evening to score her third win in 24 hours, just outrunning Misaki Onishi  (Team Sekisui Kagaku) and the three others in the tightly-packed lead group to win the 5000 m final in 15:32.37.  In addition to the triple win it was Chepyego's second-straight national corporate 5000 m title.  Although Onishi was unable to match Chepyego's closing speed in the home straight she had the satisfaction of doing what Chihiro Miyawaki  (Team Toyota) was unable to do in the men's 10000 m, clipping 0.01 seconds off her best to record a new PB of 15:32.88.   Hanae Tanaka  of 2011 National Corporate Women's Ekiden champion Team Daiichi Seimei  held off Kenyans Grace Kimanzi  (Team Starts) and Doricah Obare  (Team Hitachi) for 3rd...

by Brett Larner Fifteen hours after winning the National Corporate Track and Field Championships 10000 m, Kenyan teammates Sally Chepyego  and Paul Tanui  of Team Kyudenko  returned to win their  5000 m qualifying heats.  Chepyego took the women's 5000 m heat one in 15:52.97, the fastest time among the 27 qualifiers for the final, with heat two going to Grace Kimanzi  (Kenya/Team Starts) in a relaxed 16:07.28.  Tanui's 13:58.81 was good enough to win the second men's heat but was the slowest of the three men's winning times.  Sera H.S. graduates Bitan Karoki  (Team S&B) and Charles Ndirangu  (Team JFE Steel) won the other two heats, Karoki in 13:55.72 and Ndirangu in 13:53.61, the fastest time among the 27 qualifiers.  Close behind Ndirangu, Hayato Saito  (Team Honda) had the fastest qualifying time by a Japanese runner, 13:55.37.  Karoki and Ndirangu's matchup in the final should be one of the highlights of this yea...

by Brett Larner Kenyan teammates Paul Tanui  and Sally Chepyego  of the Kyushu-based Team Kyudenko  swept the 10000 m A-heats on the first day of this year's National Corporate Track and Field Championships, Sept. 21 at Hakatonomori Field in Fukuoka.  Holding the home-soil advantage, Tanui and Chepyego ran virtually identical races, going out solo and leading throughout the race to take the win unchallenged, Tanui in 27:30.22 and Chepyego in 31:33.76.  For Tanui it was a successful defense of his 2011 national corporate 10000 m title. In both the men's and women's races a pack of three pursued the leader.  In the men's race the pack included Kenyans Edward Waweru  (Team NTN) and Patrick Muwaka  (Team Aisan Kogyo) along with 21-year-old Chihiro Miyawaki  (Team Toyota), the sixth-fastest Japanese man ever over 10000 m with a best of 27:41.57 from last November.  Miyawaki fell off the pace of Waweru and Muwaka but, as with his PB run la...

http://www.sanspo.com/sports/news/20120920/ath12092020060002-n1.html translated by Brett Larner Speaking to members of the media on Sept. 20, Rikuren executive Susumu Takano evaluated the results of the Japanese Olympic team in athletics, where the team's record of one medal and two top eight performances fell short of the federation's goal of one medal and five top eight performances.  "It's a very disappointing result," he said.  "We beat ourselves."  Takano was positive about hammer thrower Koji Murofushi 's bronze  medal but identified the female marathoners' inability to cope with pace changes and the disqualifications of the race walkers as challenges that must be dealt with in the future. With regard to the men's and women's marathon teams' inability to score a medal, board member Toshihiko Seko  spoke frankly, saying, "The volume of their training is insufficient.  Kenyan athletes are training more than the Japane...

http://www.insidethegames.biz/sports/summer/athletics/1010922-shanghai-marathon-latest-event-hit-by-sino-japan-crisis

http://www.hokkoku.co.jp/subpage/LS20120920601.htm translated by Brett Larner 2012 Hakone Ekiden course record-setters Toyo University  arrived in Nanao, Ishikawa prefecture Sept. 19 for an intensive training camp.  Having lost Fifth Stage record setter Ryuji Kashiwabara  and three other members of this year's superb winning team to graduation, the remaining members are focused on bringing newfound strength to this year's university ekiden season and show their competitive spirit as they run fast workouts around the Nanao waterfront and on Noto Island. This year marks the eighth time that Toyo have trained in Nanao.  As the team's last major training camp before the start of the three major university ekidens this season, running repeatedly on the flatlands around the waterfront and the steep slopes of Noto Island is key in tempering their strength.  Asked about the candidates for the spot as the team's new ace member, head coach Toshiyuki Sakai  rai...

A press release from the NYRR: New York, September 19, 2012 — Two-time champion Marilson Gomes dos Santos of Brazil and three-time Olympian Kayoko Fukushi of Japan will add fierce competition to the already stacked men’s and women’s fields in the 2012 ING New York City Marathon. Joining Gomes dos Santos in the men’s race will be Olympic marathoners Abderrahime Bouramdane of Morocco and Great Britain’s Scott Overall . 2011 runner-up Buzunesh Deba of Ethiopia and national record-holders Valeria Straneo of Italy and Adriana Da Silva of Brazil will add to the women’s field, it was announced today by New York Road Runners president and CEO Mary Wittenberg. 2011 winner Masazumi Soejima of Japan and runner-up Shelly Woods of Great Britain were announced for the men’s and women’s wheelchair races. Nationally, the telecast will be available on ESPN2, online at WatchESPN.com, and—for fans who receive their video subscription from an affiliated provider—on smartphones and tablets vi...

http://www.sponichi.co.jp/sports/news/2012/09/18/kiji/K20120918004142040.html http://www.gifu-np.co.jp/news/sports/20120919/201209191210_5077.shtml translated and edited by Brett Larner The organizers of the Nagoya Women's Marathon announced Sept. 18 that based on criteria established by the IAAF to evaluate worldwide road races on the quality and size of their fields, beginning with next year's running on Mar. 10 the Nagoya Women's Marathon will be upgraded from its current silver label to a gold label, the highest ranking.  Nagoya is the fourth domestic Japanese race to receive a gold label, following the Lake Biwa Mainichi Marathon, Tokyo Marathon and Fukuoka International Marathon, and the first women-only marathon featuring both professional and amateur runners to be recognized as a gold-label event.  This year Nagoya changed from its historic elite Nagoya International Women's Marathon format to become a mass-participation event.  With 13000 runners it was t...

http://www.shinshu-liveon.jp/www/topics/node_226793 translated by Brett Larner Two Ethiopian marathoners are training in the Iizuna highlands of Nagano for the Nov. 18 Yokohama International Women's Marathon at the invitation of former marathoner Hiroki Okuma , 53, who runs a Tokyo-based non-profit organization that supports an Ethiopian orphanage.  Okuma hopes that by giving young runners from a country with so many competitive athletes the opportunity to race overseas he will help call attention to the level of poverty within Ethiopia and garner support for charitable works. The two athletes are Salam Mawit Almaiyo , 20, and Almarz Tilahun , 22.*  Going by Japanese nicknames Sakura and Tsubaki, the two Ethiopians are interacting with the local residents of Iizuna in their day-to-day lives.  Aiming for good results in Yokohama they are training hard everyday on the area's hills and trails. Okuma, who ran the Hakone Ekiden and Beijing International Marathon in hi...

http://www.sakigake.jp/p/akita/news.jsp?kc=20120916k translated and edited by Brett Larner The 27th Tazawako Marathon took place Sept. 16 on a course around Lake Tazawa in Senboku, Akita.  4869 runners from both inside and outside Akita prefecture took part in the race, which included 45 divisions over four different distances, 3 km, 10 km, 20 km and full marathon.  With temperatures climbing to 30 degrees under a cloudless sky 4198 runners succeeded in completing their races.   Koki Kawauchi  (Takasaki Keizai Univ.), younger brother of 2011 World Championships marathoner Yuki Kawauchi  (Saitama Pref.), took his first marathon win in 2:37:49, while Eri Suzuki  (Noshiro) won the women's race in 3:10:56. Translator's note:  Click here for complete results .  The same day as Koki Kawauchi's win, his brother Yuki Kawauchi won the Sydney Marathon in a course record 2:11:52 .

by Brett Larner Three Japanese men from two rival companies were on the roads in Europe this weekend competing over the half marathon distance.  At the Great North Run former Meiji University captain Minoru Ikebe  (Team Honda) had the fastest time of the three, running just off his PB in 1:03:48, the fastest time ever by a Japanese man on the Great North Run course even though far off winner 2011 Lake Biwa Mainichi Marathon winner and London Olympics bronze medalist  Wilson Kipsang 's winning time of 59:06.  Former Team Denso runner and 2012 Olympic Marathon gold medalist Tiki Gelana  (Ethiopia) took 3rd in the women's race behind the outstanding debut of Tirunesh Dibaba  (Ethiopia) and runner-up Edna Kiplagat  (Kenya), the 2011 World Championships marathon gold medalist. In the Czech Republic at the Usti nad Ladem Half Marathon, 2011 World Championships men's marathon team member Yoshinori Oda  (Team Toyota) ran almost 30 seconds off Ikebe'...

by Brett Larner photo by Adrian Miles Lining up for his sixth marathon of the year after a late Friday night flight, Yuki Kawauchi (Saitama Pref.) turned in his second win in three weeks as he set a 2:11:52 course record to lead a Japanese sweep at the Sept. 16 Sydney Marathon. Just three weeks after winning the hot and humid Hokkaido Marathon in 2:18:38 , Kawauchi set off in a small lead pack on pace to break the 2:14:12 Sydney course record set back in 1994.  Splitting 1:06:08 for the first half, he soon dropped Kenyan Felix Kandie  and was on his own as he pushed on to run a negative split despite the challenging nature of the Sydney course which some estimates put at two to three minutes slow .  Kawauchi crossed the line with a margin of more than four minutes over Kandie, his time of 2:11:52 taking nearly two and a half minutes off the course record and the third-best time of his career.  Next up Kawauchi will run October's World Half Marathon Championsh...

http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/national/news/20120913-OYT1T01096.htm translated by Brett Larner Held each year in March on the toll roads along the Sagami Bay waterfront in Atami, Shizuoka, the organizers of the Atami Yurakkusu Marathon have announced that next year's 29th running will be cancelled because they "cannot ensure adequate evacuation routes in the event of a tsunami."  Over 3000 runners from around the area take part in the race each year, but due to the inability of organizers to come up with an alternate course it is very likely that the race's cancellation will be permanent. The Atami Yurakkusu Marathon was first held in 1985, its main draw coming in the chance to run on the 6 km Atami Beach Line toll road in Atami and Kanagawa Prefecture.  In the event that the predicted Great Kanto Earthquake along the Sagami Trough takes place, a 10.5 m-high tsunami is expected to hit the area within 5 to 10 minutes.  In order to ensure runners' safety race orga...

http://www.albertostretti.org/2012/09/greatnorthrunofficial-startinglists.html Former Meiji University captain Minoru Ikebe  (Team Honda) will make his British half-marathon debut at Sunday's Great North Run with assistance from JRN.

http://www.chicagomarathon.com/CMS400Min/uploadedFiles/Chicago_Marathon/Press_Center/Press%20Release%2009-12-12.pdf Along with the six Japanese men in the Chicago Marathon field, 2011 Fukuoka Marathon winner Samuel Ndungu  is a longtime Japanese-based runner, Thomas Frazer  was a member of the Shibuya Ekiden course record-setting team, and Lucy Kabuu  is a graduate of Aomori Yamada H.S. and a former runner for Suzuki Hamamatsu.

by Brett Larner Two days after winning the National University Track & Field Championships 10000 m title, Kenyan first-year Enock Omwamba  (Yamanashi Gakuin Univ.) returned to outrun Nihon University's Kenyan pair Benjamin Gandu  and Daniel Kitonyi  and all Japanese comers for the 5000 m title.  Running off a slow first 2000 m in 5:40, Omwamba accelerated throughout the second half of the race to take the win in 13:53.53, Gandu 2nd in 13:55.81.   Shuho Dairokuno  (Meiji Univ.) was the top Japanese finisher, 4th overall in 14:02.01 a step ahead of Aoyama Gakuin University's star first-year recruit Kazuma Kubota  with Aoyama Gakuin captain Takehiro Deki  just behind in his first quality performance since his 2:10:02 marathon debut at March's Lake Biwa Mainichi Marathon.  Defending collegiate 5000 m champion Kenta Murayama  (Komazawa Univ.) was only 14th in 14:22.38 just ahead of his twin brother Kota Murayama  (Josai Univ.) Th...

http://www.iau-ultramarathon.org/index.asp?menucode=h02&col001=1270&tmp=tmp3&foto=photo0 Click here for complete individual results.

by Brett Larner Day one of the 2012 Japanese National University Track & Field Championships saw a breakthrough run in the women's 10000 m from one half of Tsukuba University's Kyuma twins, Haruka Kyuma , who dominated the competition to take the win in a solid best mark of 32:59.64, five seconds ahead of runner-up Ai Furukubo (Kyoto Sangyo Univ.) who in turn held off 3rd-place Mai Tsuda (Ritsumeikan Univ.) by three seconds.  Kyuma's twin sister Moe Kyuma , also of Tsukuba, was a distant 5th in 33:36.18. Kenyan newcomer Enock Omwamba  (Yamanashi Gakuin Univ.) continued his rise up through the ranks this year in the men's 10000 m, outgunning defending national collegiate camp Benjamin Gandu  (Kenya/Nihon Univ.) by two seconds to take the national title in 28:58.77.  Gandu's first-year teammate Daniel Kitonyi  (Kenya/Nihon Univ.) picked up the 1500 m title in 3:44.51 in the absence of defending champion Suguru Osako  (Waseda Univ.), who has been rac...

text and photos by Brett Larner Makoto Fukui (Team Fujitsu) and Ryosuke Fukuyama (Team Honda) in the early going at the 2012 Muenster Marathon Unseasonably hot temperatures kept the field at the 2012 Muenster Marathon from approaching the course record of 2:10:25, but despite the heat the front end of the men's race was the deepest and most international in the race's 11-year history. The two men with 2:10 bests went 1-2 as Moroccan Ahmed Nasef took the win by five seconds over Kenyan Paul Kimaiyo Kimugul , 2:12:21 to 2:12:26 after breaking away near 35 km.  Kimugul challenged Nasef's win, saying that Nasef had received unfair aid from a cyclist giving him water in the final 7 km, but the protest was dismissed after judges investigated the claims and could find no supporting evidence or witnesses.                                      The Muenster Marathon finish Defending ch...

by Brett Larner Following Asian Records by Japanese athletes in both the men's 5000 m T-11 and T-12 divisions, Masahiro Okamura  became the third Japanese man at the London Paralympics to set a new Asian Record, running 2:28:51 for 4th in the men's marathon T-12.  All three of the medalists ahead of him likewise set area records, with winner Laso Suarez  (Spain) setting a world record of 2:24:50.  5000 m Asian Record holder Shinya Wada  took a distant 5th in 2:40:08, with 2004 Athens Paralympics marathon gold medalist Yuichi Takahashi  7th in 2:42:09. 2012 London Paralympics Men's Marathon T-12 Sept. 9, 2012 click here for complete results 1. Laso Suarez (Spain) - 2:24:50 -  WR 2. Moreno Serna (Colombia) - 2:26:39 - AR 3. Abderrahim Zhiou (Tunisia) - 2:26:56 - AR 4. Masahiro Okamura (Japan) - 2:28:51 - AR 5. Shinya Wada (Japan) - 2:40:08 6. Gabriel Macchi (Portugal) - 2:40:13 7. Yuichi Takahashi (Japan) - 2:42:09 8. Joaquim Machado (Port...

2012 London Paralympics  Men's 5000 m - T11 London, U.K., 9/7/12 click here for complete results 1. Cristian Valenzuela (Chile) - 15:26.26 - PB 2. Jason Joseph Dunkerley (Canada) - 15:34.07 - PB 3. Shinya Wada (Japan) - 15:55.26 - AR 4. Francis Thuo Karanja (Kenya) - 15:56.67 - PB 5. Nuno Alves (Portugal) - 16:06.28

Ryosuke Fukuyama (Team Honda) and Makoto Fukui  (Team Fujitsu) will make their European marathon debuts at this Sunday's Volksbank Muenster Marathon in Germany with support from JRN.  Fukui ran a PB of 2:14:15 at February's Tokyo Marathon, with Fukuyama running a PB of 2:13:55 a week later at the Lake Biwa Mainichi Marathon.

http://mytown.asahi.com/toyama/news.php?k_id=17000001209070002 translated by Brett Larner London Olympics marathoner Arata Fujiwara  (30, Miki House), a native of Nagasaki, visited Toyama city hall on Sept. 6 to talk to mayor Masashi Mori  about his Olympic experience.  Asked whether he is targeting the Rio de Janeiro Olympics in Brazil four years down the road he replied, "Of course," showing his resolve to make his third Olympic marathon team. In the course of his casual chat with Mayor Mori, Fujiwara looked back on the endless parade of little curves and undulations on the Olympic marathon course, saying, "It was a rough, unsteady course and it just cracked my strength."  When the topic turned to the psychological demands of competing in an event that lasts for hours Fujiwara told the mayor, "When you're running for a long period of time a lot of things float through your mind to fill the emptiness.  Sometimes I find myself singing songs inside,...

http://uk.eurosport.yahoo.com/news/two-athletes-appeal-cas-over-campaigning-row-201004801--spt.html;_ylt=A0LkuPD3BkhQa2cARQVPg4t4;_ylu=X3oDMTRkYXNzZ3JmBG1pdANUb3AgU3RvcmllcyBBdGhlbHRpY3MEcGtnA2Q0ZWJlYWM4LTY1ODItM2E1Ny04YmI3LWMyZGViMDNkMjVkOARwb3MDMgRzZWMDTWVkaWFCT

2012 London Paralympics Men's 5000 m - T12 London, U.K., 9/3/12 click here for complete results 1. El Amin Chentouf (Morocco) - 13:53.76 - WR 2. Abderrahim Zhiou (Tunisia) - 14:19.97 - PB 3. Henry Kirwa (Kenya) - 14:20.76 - PB 4. Gustavo Nieves (Spain) - 14:22.93 - AR 5. Tadashi Horikoshi (Japan) - 14:48.89 - AR 6. Alberto Suarez Laso (Spain) - 14:50.28 - PB 7. Nacer-Eddine Karfas (Algeria) - 15:11.41 8. Masahiro Okamura (Japan) - 15:45.98 DQ - Jose Luis Santero (Argentina)

Great Scottish Run Half Marathon Glasgow, 9/2/12 click here for complete results Men 1. Joseph Birech (Kenya) - 1:03:14 2. Sota Hoshi (Team Fujitsu) - 1:03:49 3. John Kelai (Kenya) - 1:04:17 4. Masamichi Shinozaki (Team Hitachi Logistics) - 1:05:10 5. Yuki Takamiya (Team Yakult) - 1:05:19 6. Masashi Kada (Team NTT Nishi Nihon) - 1:05:41 Women 1. Bezunesh Bekele (Ethiopia) - 1:09:09 2. Aya Nagata (Team Toyota Jidoshokki) - 1:12:02 3. Grace Momanyi (Kenya) - 1:12:41 4. Shino Saito (Team Shimamura) - 1:13:23 5. Hayley Haining (U.K.) - 1:15:03 Rock 'n' Roll Virginia Beach Half Marathon Virginia Beach, 9/2/12 click here for complete results Men 1. Nicholas Kurgat (Kenya) - 1:04:45 2. Henry Rutto (Kenya) - 1:05:01 3. Ryo Matsumoto (Team Shikoku Denryoku) - 1:05:58 4. Samuel Ndereba (Kenya) - 1:06:00 5. Rui Yonezawa (Team Chugoku Denryoku) - 1:06:32 ----- 8. Kazuki Tomaru (Team Toyota) - 1:11:13 Women 1. Rei Ohara (Team Tenmaya) - 1:13:50 2. Chihiro ...