Skip to main content

Weekend Overseas Road Race Roundup

by Brett Larner

Japanese runners turned up at three international races over the weekend.  Every year top-placing finishers at November's Ohtawara Marathon get send to the Paris Marathon.  Having turned down the 2016 trip after the Paris terror attacks, two-time Ohtawara women's winner Hiroko Yoshitomi went this time, taking 9th in 2:38:46 in her fifth marathon of 2017.  Men's winner Takahiro Gunji went under 2:20 for the first time, 21st in a PB 2:19:01 just behind Kansuke Morihashi, who took 20th in 2:18:22.

At the Hannover Marathon, Hideyuki Ikegami, a young independent who has received support from London Olympian Arata Fujiwara in recent years, made his marathon debut.  A 1:03:09 half marathoner, Ikegami came into Hannover with a 1:31:53 win at the Osaka 30 km in December and altitude training in Kenya with Fujiwara after that behind him, but despite starting out at an ambitious 2:10 pace Ikegami slowed progressively.  Between 25 and 30 km he ran into serious trouble, slowing to almost 4 min/km, but despite the early problems he gutted it out to finish 10th in 2:30:15.

At Hawaii's Hapalua Half Marathon, retired pro Yuki Yagi and Rio Olympian Kayoko Fukushi represented Japan in the event's interesting handicap start chase race.  Yagi ran the third-fastest time among the men but couldn't make up his handicap, taking 10th among men.  Fukushi was the fastest woman by more than five minutes in 1:17:03 but likewise couldn't close the ground to the top position, taking 7th among women and 18th overall.

Paris Marathon
Paris, France, 4/9/17
click here for complete results

Men
1. Paul Lonyangata (Kenya) - 2:06:10
2. Stephen Chebogut (Kenya) - 2:06:57
3. Solomon Yego (Kenya) - 2:07:12
4. Yitayal Atnafu (Ethiopia) - 2:07:21
5. Abayneh Ayele (Ethiopia) - 2:07:42
-----
20. Kansuke Morihashi (Japan) - 2:18:22
21. Takahiro Gunji (Japan) - 2:19:01 - PB

Women
1. Purity Rionoripo (Kenya) - 2:20:55 - CR
2. Agnes Barsosio (Kenya) - 2:20:59
3. Flomena Cheyech Daniel (Kenya) - 2:21:22
4. Visiline Jepkesho (Kenya) - 2:21:37
5. Yebrgual Melese (Ethiopia) - 2:22:51
-----
9. Hiroko Yoshitomi (Japan) - 2:38:46
11. Mitsuko Ino (Japan) - 2:42:37

Hannover Marathon
Hannover, Germany, 4/9/17
click here for complete results

Men
1. Allan Kipkorir Kiprono (Kenya) - 2:09:52
2. Philip Kimutai Sanga (Kenya) - 2:10:07
3. Sondre Nordstad Moen (Norway) - 2:10:07
4. Nichola Manza Kamakya (Kenya) - 2:11:35
5. Lusapho April (South Africa) - 2:11:41
-----
10. Hideyuki Ikegami (Japan) - 2:30:15

Women
1. Fate Tola (Germany) - 2:27:48
2. Nataliya Lehonkova (Ukraine) - 2:33:20
3. Mulunesh Zewdu Asefa (Ethiopia) - 2:37:27
4. Tetyana Vernygor (Ukraine) - 2:38:48
5. Zhanna Mamazhanova (Kazakhstan) - 2:47:36

Hapalua Half Marathon
Honolulu, U.S.A., 4/9/17
click here for complete results

Men
1. Philip Tarbei (Kenya) - 1:03:27
2. Ryan Tsang (U.S.A.) - 1:16:05
3. Abraham Kipyatich (Kenya) - 1:05:28
-----
10. Yuki Yagi (Japan) - 1:09:31

Women
1. Malia Crouse (U.S.A.) - 1:22:55
2. Kathleen O'Neil (U.S.A.) - 1:23:06
3. Evelina Mansson (U.S.A.) - 1:29:16
-----
7. Kayoko Fukushi (Japan) - 1:17:03

© 2017 Brett Larner
all rights reserved

Labels

Labels:

Comments

Metts said…
Looking at the Paris results; the 2:30 to 2:50 range or dedicated amateurs, those who have jobs, but still find a way to run a decent marathon. Not just London, NY, Boston, Tokyo etc.
April 10, 2017 at 8:39 AM
Post a Comment

Most-Read This Week

Australian Male Arrested on Drug Smuggling Charges After Entering Japan for Osaka Marathon

On Apr. 9 the Kinki Region Bureau of Health, Labor and Welfare's Drug Control Division arrested Matthew Inglis Fox , 38, an Australian business owner of no known fixed address, on charges of violating the importation regulations of the Narcotics Control Act by smuggling tablets containing marijuana elements from the United States. The suspect had entered Japan in February to run in the Osaka Marathon . The suspect was arrested on suspicion of smuggling approximately 12 pills containing marijuana by sending them from a U.S. airport to Osaka's Kansai Airport using an international courier service on Feb. 19. The Osaka branch of the Customs Service discovered the tablets in arriving cargo and suspected them to be narcotics. Customs contacted the Narcotics Control Division, which then began its investigation of the case. According to the Narcotics Control Division, the suspect denies the charges.  Translator's note: Fox, who received a lifetime ban from the Ageo City Half Mara...
1 comment
Read more

Australian YouTuber Handed Lifetime Ban by Ageo City Half Marathon After Running 1:06 with Another Runner's Bib (updated)

After discussion with their race's chief JAAF referee, on Nov. 27 the organizers of the Ageo City Half Marathon handed down a lifetime ban from their event against 36-year-old Australian Matt Inglis Fox  for running the Nov. 15 race wearing the bib number of another JAAF-registered runner. The incident came to light after Fox posted on his personal Instagram account that he had run a PB of 1:06:33 and finished 203rd in Ageo with a 10 km split of 31:03, along with photos and video of himself in the race wearing a bib number beginning with 11. Fox did not appear in the results by name or in that time or place, the closest match being a 1:06:54 gross, 1:06:50 net finish time with a 31:21 10 km split for 18th place in the JAAF-registered division and 209th overall by bib number 1129, registered to a non-Japanese Tokyo-resident club runner. The club runner, Harrisson Uk , readily confirmed that he had given his bib to Fox, saying, "I gave my number to Matt. It wasn't me."...
12 comments
Read more

10 Meet Records and a National Record at Hyogo Relay Carnival

The grand prix distance events were absent from the program this year at the 73rd Hyogo Relay Carnival , with the top performances in the women's 5000 m and men's 10000 m Asics Challenge races going to steepler Yuzu Nishide (Daihatsu) in 15:49.48 and Japan-based Kenyan Emmanuel Kiplagat (Mitsubishi Juko) in 28:12.42. But there were a lot of new meet records, and one national record. Ryosuke Kusumi (Shiga) set a T37-class NR of 58.35 m in the para men's 400 m. Kairi Ikeno (Suma Gakuen H.S.) came less than 2 seconds short of a new high school record in the women's 2000 m , beating her own MR from last year by over 3 seconds in 5:55.36, almost 17 seconds ahead of 2nd place. The top 5 all broke or tied the men's high jump meet record, with both Yuto Seko (FAAS) and Tomohiro Shinno (Kyudenko) clearing 2.25 m and Takashi Eto (Kobe Digital Labo), Chao-Hsuan Fu (Taiwan) and Naoto Hasegawa (Niigata Albirex RC) clearing 2.20 m. Yuki Hashioka (Fujitsu) won the men...
Post a Comment
Read more