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Seven Rio Medalists in Kawasaki - Weekend Preview

by Brett Larner

It's a busy weekend ahead both at home and abroad. The main road action happens overseas, with London Olympian and 2:07:48 marathoner Arata Fujiwara in Mongolia to run the Ulanbaatar Marathon where a victory will earn him a horse. A group of five Japanese men and women led by 1:01:37 runner Ken Yokote and 2017 National Corporate Half Marathon champion Ami Utsunomiya is in Sweden on a corporate league junket to the Göteborgsvarvet Half Marathon to gain valuable experience running and going to laundromats internationally.

Back home, many of their corporate league brethren and sistren will instead be lining up at one of four regional corporate league track championships. Up north in Akita, the East Japan Region meet features top-level Japan-based Africans Jonathan Ndiku, William Malel and Wesley Ledama, with Yuta Shitara, Masato Kikuchi and Azusa Sumi leading the Japanese crowd. The Kansai Region meet happens at the same time in Osaka, with the Chugoku Region meet, which held its 5000 m races last weekend, wrapping up its second half in Hiroshima. The Kyushu Region, home of 2017 New Year Ekiden national champion team Asahi Kasei, will hold its meet in Kita-Kyushu.

One of Asahi Kasei's top men, Tetsuya Yoroizaka, will give the corporate regional meet a miss in favor of racing Rio Olympis 10000 m silver medalist Paul Tanui in the 3000 m being held in Kanagawa as part of Sunday's Golden Grand Prix Kawasaki meet. Gold medalists Thomas Rohler (javelin throw) and Tiana Bartoletta (long jump) and silver medalist Wenxiu Zhang (hammer throw) lead the field events at the Kawasaki meet, which will be broadcast on TBS Sunday afternoon. Sprint events include Rio silver medalists Justin Gatlin, Asuka Cambridge and Shota Iizuka.

© 2017 Brett Larner
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CK said…
"...valuable experience going to laundromats internationally". Well at least they'll be good at it by the time they are selected for a championship event and so will be able to concentrate on packing their own koshi-hikari...
May 19, 2017 at 8:54 PM
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