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Berlin Marathon - Japanese Results

by Brett Larner

With decent performances in Chicago and Frankfurt and a 2:09:21 PB at this year's Tokyo Marathon behind him, Koji Gokaya (Team JR Higashi Nihon) turned in the fastest marathon of the year by a Japanese man outside Japan, running 2:10:58 for 9th at the Berlin Marathon.  Gokaya, sub-2:10 men Tomoyuki Morita (Team Kanebo) and Masanori Sakai (Team Kyudenko) and track star Yuki Sato (Team Nissin Shokuhin) ran the entire race inside the third pack just under 2:10 pace, Morita and Sakai tending toward the front of the group and Gokaya and Sato relaxing out back.  A late-race move by Reid Coolsaet in a bid for the Canadian national record pulled Sato along, but after 40 km he faded badly and was easily run down by Gokaya.  Sato, in his third marathon, still managed a sizable PB of 2:12:32 for 14th, while Sakai and Morita dropped to 22nd and 33rd in 2:14:52 and 2:15:57.

In the women's race, 2014 Asian Games team member Eri Hayakawa (Team Toto) started near PB pace in the second group, with 2014 Yokohama International Women's Marathon winner Tomomi Tanaka (Team Daiichi Seimei) leading off more conservatively on high 2:27 pace.  Tanaka ran evenly throughout the race and overtook Hayakawa early in the second half, looking like she might make top 5th but stalling in her advance at 8th and crossing the finish line in 2:28:00.  Hayakawa ended up 14th in 2:31:27, with Mayumi Uchiyama (Yamanashi Gakuin Univ.) taking the third Japanese women's spot in 2:44:30 for 39th.

Berlin Marathon
Berlin, Germany, 9/27/15
click here for complete results

Men
1. Eliud Kipchoge (Kenya) - 2:04:00
2. Eliud Kiptanui (Kenya) - 2:05:21
3. Feyisa Lilesa (Ethiopia) - 2:06:57
4. Emmanuel Mutai (Kenya) - 2:07:46
5. Geoffrey Mutai (Kenya) - 2:09:29
6. Reid Coolsaet (Canada) - 2:10:28
7. Koen Naert (Belgium) - 2:10:31
8. Yared Shegumo (Poland) - 2:10:47
9. Koji Gokaya (Japan/JR Higashi Nihon) - 2:10:58
10. Scott Overall (Great Britain) - 2:11:24
-----
14. Yuki Sato (Japan/Nissin Shokuhin) - 2:12:32
22. Masanori Sakai (Japan/Kyudenko) - 2:14:52
33. Tomoyuki Morita (Japan/Kanebo) - 2:15:57

Women
1. Gladys Cherono (Kenya) - 2:19:25
2. Aberu Kebede (Ethiopia) - 2:20:48
3. Meseret Hailu (Ethiopia) - 2:24:33
4. Tadelech Bekele (Ethiopia) - 2:25:01
5. Andrea Deelstra (Netherlands) - 2:26:46
6. Maja Neuenschwander (Switzerland) - 2:26:49
7. Lisa Nemec (Croatia) - 2:27:57
8. Tomomi Tanaka (Japan/Daiich Seimei) - 2:28:00
9. Sonia Samuels (Great Britain) - 2:28:04
10. Fate Tola (Ethiopia) - 2:28:24
-----
14. Eri Hayakwa (Japan/Toto) - 2:31:27
39. Mayumi Uchiyama (Japan/Yamanashi Gakuin Univ.) - 2:44:30

(c) 2015 Brett Larner
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