Weekend Track Roundup

by Brett Larner

Following up last week's Cork City Sports meet in Ireland that saw a sizeable group of mostly collegiate Japanese women in the 3000 m, Japanese men got started on their annual European track junket at meets in the Netherlands and Belgium. 2014 Waseda University graduate Suguru Osako (Team Nissin Shokuhin) was due to run the two mile at the Diamond League Glasgow meet, but with the cancellation of that distance he instead headed to the Netherlands' Runnersworld Track Meeting, where he ran 8:02.11 for 2nd in the 3000 m as a tuneup for next weekend's KBC Nacht meet in Belgium, where he and rival Yuki Sato (Team Nissin Shokuhin) will run 5000 m.

Also tuning up for the KBC Nacht was a large group of young corporate league runners and 2014 Asian Games track team member Kota Murayama (Josai Univ.) in the 1500 m at Belgium's Guldensporenmeeting. Led by former Japanese university 10000 m record holder Tetsuya Yoroizaka (Team Asahi Kasei), 2nd overall in 3:42.21, altogether six Japanese men broke 3:44, all in PBs, adding up to one of the best Japanese 1500 m races in recent memory. The Japanese man with the fastest PB heading into the race, Ikuto Yufu (Team Fujitsu), made a good progress on his return from the injury that has bothered him since January's Hakone Ekiden, running 3:46.34 for 9th just ahead of on-the-men American star Chris Solinsky. Women's two-time 1500 m national champion Ayako Jinnouchi (Team Kyudenko) was 9th in the women's 1500 m in 4:15.19, well off her best.

Back home in Japan, Yoroizaka's younger former teammates at Meiji University did well in their annual dual against Hosei University, sweeping the top four spots in the 1500 m. Senior Kei Fumimoto won in a meet record and PB 3:47.01 well ahead of junior Shin Kimura, who likewise set a PB of 3:49.00.

63rd Cork City Sports
Cork, Ireland, 7/8/14
click here for complete results

Women's 3000 m
1. Marielle Hall (U.S.A.) - 8:54.48
2. Melissa Duncan (Australia) - 8:58.14
3. Fionnuala Britton (Ireland) - 9:01.01
4. Lauren Penney (U.S.A.) - 9:01.33
5. Helen Clitheroe (England) - 9:03.95
6. Yuika Mori (Team Yamada Denki) - 9:05.57
7. Maria McCambridge (Ireland) - 9:05.66
8. Natsuki Omori (Ritsumeikan Univ.) - 9:09.54
9. Dominika Nowakowska (Poland) - 9:10.79
10. Sara Treacy (Ireland) - 9:12.35
-----
13. Mai Shoji (Chukyo Univ.) - 9:18.96
16. Sakurako Fukuuchi (Daito Bunka Univ.) - 9:24.55
17. Shiho Takechi (Team Yamada Denki) - 9:34.45
18. Mai Tsuda (Ritsumeikan Univ.) - 9:41.26

Runnersworld Track Meeting
Utrecht, Netherlands, 7/11/14
click here for complete results

Men's 3000 m
1. Jesper van der Wielen (Netherlands) - 7:58.56
2. Suguru Osako (Team Nissin Shokuhin) - 8:02.11
3. Mohamed Ali Mohamed (Netherlands) - 8:19.85
4. Jorit van Malsen (Netherlands) - 8:34.17
5. Wouter Dilling (Netherlands) - 8:43.69

17th Guldensporenmeeting
Kortrijk, Belgium, 7/12/14
click here for complete results

Men's 1500 m Heat 1
1. Mark Nouws (Netherlands) -3:42.01
2. Tetsuya Yoroizaka (Team Asahi Kasei) - 3:42.21
3. Kazuya Deguchi (Team Asahi Kasei) - 3:42.98
4. Daiki Hirose (Team Osaka Gas) - 3:43.23
5. Masato Kikuchi (Team Konica Minolta) - 3:43.52
6. Roy Van Eekelen (Netherlands) - 3:43.69
7. Kota Murayama (Josai Univ.) - 3:43.85
8. Hans Kristian Floystad (Norway) - 3:44.54
9. Ikuto Yufu (Team Fujitsu) - 3:46.34
10. Chris Solinsky (U.S.A.) - 3:46.55
-----
12. Ryo Kiname (Team Mitsubishi Juko Nagasaki) - 3:47.33
13. Hideyuki Tanaka (Team Toyota) - 3:47.84
16. Aritaka Kajiwara (Team Press Kogyo) - 3:49.00
17. Yuta Shitara (Team Honda) - 3:49.28
19. Keita Shitara (Team Konica Minolta) - 3:54.69

Men's 1500 m Heat 2
1. Carsten Schlangen (Germany) - 3:38.85
2. Joe Stilin (U.S.A.) - 3:39.47
3. Conselius Kipruto (Kenya) - 3:40.07
4. Andy Bayer (U.S.A.) - 3:40.10
5. Peter Callahan (U.S.A.) - 340.58
-----
12. Toshihiro Kenmotsu (Team NTT Nishi Nihon) - 3:43.23

Women's 1500 m
1. Gabe Grunewald (U.S.A.) - 4:07.70
2. Kokebe Tesfaye (Ethiopia) - 4:08.61
3. Basu Sado (Ethiopia) - 4:08.85
4. Kim Conley (U.S.A.) - 4:09.48
5. Katie Wright (New Zealand) - 4:13.47
-----
9. Ayako Jinnouchi (Team Kyudenko) - 4:15.19

64th Meiji University - Hosei University Dual Meet
Tokyo, 7/13/14
complete results coming shortly

Men's 1500 m
1. Kei Fumimoto (Meiji Univ.) - 3:47.01 - MR
2. Shin Kimura (Meiji Univ.) - 3:49.00
3. Kentaro Egashira (Meiji Univ.) - 3:52.73
4. Takumi Hosaka (Meiji Univ.) - 3:52.95

(c) 2014 Brett Larner
all rights reserved

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