Skip to main content

With Hokkaido Marathon Wins Murasawa and Maeda Become First to Qualify for 2020 Olympic Trials Race

Akinobu Murasawa (Nissin Shokuhin) and Honami Maeda (Tenmaya) became the first athletes to qualify for the new MGC Race 2020 Olympic trials event, clearing the JAAF's hoops with PB runs in heat to win the 2017 Hokkaido Marathon.

One of the most popular runners to come out of the current boom in university men's ekiden running, Murasawa had an unsuccessful marathon debut at Lake Biwa in March, up front until late but fading to 28th in 2:17:51. This time he stayed in the front pack through the slow opening going, ignoring a move by Shingo Igarahi (Josai Univ. Coaching Staff) and Kenichi Jiromaru (Raffine Coaching Staff) around the halfway point that put them over 30 seconds ahead.

Part of a group of five who set off in pursuit at 30 km, Murasawa moved into the top spot just before 40 km and held it all the way to the finish to win in 2:14:48. As the first race at which Japanese men could qualify for the JAAF's new single-trial 2020 Olympic selection event Hokkaido's winner had to go sub-2:15:00 to earn his place, and with Murasawa clearing that standard his place in the winter 2019-20 MGC trials race is assured.


The women's race saw a pack of four head out together just under 2:28:00 pace, well clear of the 2:32:00 time standard for the winner to make the MGC Race qualifying cut. Just past 25 km Keiko Nogami (Juhachi Ginko) make a break for it, opening a lead of over 20 seconds by 30 km, but it was a little too  much too soon. Maeda, like Murasawa running her second marathon after a so-so debut earlier this year, quickly reeled her in and took over, opening a 20-second-plus lead of her own by 35 km and never looking back.

With a 2:28:48 PB for the win, a rare sub-2:30 clocking in Hokkaido, Maeda easily cleared the MGC Race qualifying standard, joining Murasawa as the first to enter the ranks of what is expected to be a small field of 10~20 men and women each in the official trials race for what is bound to be one of the toughest and highest pressure teams to make at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.


31st Hokkaido Marathon

Sapporo, Hokkaido, 8/27/17

Women
1. Honami Maeda (Tenmaya) - 2:28:48 - PB
2. Keiko Nogami (Juhachi Ginko) - 2:30:11
3. Hanae Tanaka (Daiichi Seimei) - 2:32:16
4. Yuko Mizuguchi (Denso) - 2:34:04
5. Kaho Tanaka (Daiichi Seimei) - 2:34:45 - debut
6. Yurie Doi (Fujitsu) - 2:36:28 - PB
7. Mami Onuki (Sysmex) - 2:37:15 - debut
8. Chika Ihara (Higo Ginko) - 2:38:47 - debut
9. Mai Nagaoka (Sysmex) - 2:41:15 - PB
10. Sakie Arai (Higo Ginko) - 2:42:31
-----
DNF - Miharu Shimokado (Nitori)

Men
1. Akinobu Murasawa (Nissin Shokuhin) - 2:14:48 - PB
2. Taiki Yoshimura (Asahi Kasei) - 2:15:04
3. Jo Fukuda (Nishitetsu) - 2:15:11 - PB
4. Fumihiro Maruyama (Asahi Kasei) - 2:15:21
5. Shingo Igarashi (Josai Univ Coaching Staff) - 2:15:41
6. Tatsunori Hamasaki (Nanjo City Hall) - 2:16:18
7. Masanori Sakai (Kyudenko) - 2:16:26
8. Kenta Kitazawa (Yachiyo Kogyo) - 2:16:52 - PB
9. Kansuke Morihashi (Raffine) - 2:17:35
10.  Masaharu Amano (NTN) - 2:17:48 - debut

© 2017 Brett Larner, all rights reserved
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Most-Read This Week

Japan Post Holds Off Sekisui Kagaku to Win Queens Ekiden National Title

  Japan Post  was back on top at the Queens Ekiden corporate women's national championships Sunday in Sendai, holding off last year's winner Sekisui Kagaku  over the second half of a race that came as close as 1 second to take 1st with a final margin of victory of 27 seconds. Sekisui Kagaku was out fast with a win on the 7.0 km opening leg by Erika Tanoura  and a new CR for the 12:56 second leg by Yuma Yamamoto , 17 seconds better than her own CR from last year. Last year's 4th-placer Shiseido  briefly led on the 10.6 km third leg with an excellent 33:17 stage win from Rino Goshima , but behind her Japan Post's Ririka Hironaka  returned from her latest injury problems to pass Sekisui Kagaku's Sayaka Sato  and hand off 6 seconds ahead. New recruit Caroline Kariba  ran Shiseido down on the 3.6 km fourth leg and put Japan Post 22 seconds ahead of Sekisui Kagaku, but a duel of marathoners between JP's  Ayuko Suzuki  and Sekisui's Hitomi Niiy...
Post a Comment
Read more

2023 Champion Kamimura Gakuen Girls Ready for Sunday's National High School Ekiden

Ahead of the Dec. 22 National High School Ekiden in Kyoto, the 2023 national champion Kamimura Gakuen H.S. girls held an open practice session for the media. 2023 was Kamimura Gakuen's only 2nd national title ever. Can it make it two in a row? The Kamimura Gakuen girls won the Nov. 2 Kagoshima Prefecture High School Ekiden, its 9th-straight win and 31st victory overall in the prefectural qualifying race for Nationals. 3rd on her stage at Nationals last year as part of the winning team, Hina Ogura summed up this year's lineup. "There's no really dominant star runner this year, but each person is aware of their position on the team and working together to share in everyone playing leading roles." Sakine Noguchi ran the Second Stage at Nationals last year. "I think we've improved our stamina," she said, "so I hope that we can get the best possible results and all finish with a smile." Handling the First Stage last year, Rin Setoguchi said,...
Post a Comment
Read more

Kyoyama Girls and Fuji Boys Win National Junior High School Ekiden Titles

The 32nd National Junior High School Ekiden took place Sunday at Kibogaoka Bunka Koen in Shiga. In the girls' race, Okayama's Kyoyama J.H.S. scored back-to-back titles with a 41:18 for the 5-leg, 12.0 km course. After a slow start from lead runner Wakana Minami , the Kyoyama girls moved up steadily, third runner Mei Iwasaki taking the lead with a stage win and fourth runner Chisato Shimoda setting a new stage record of 6:41 for her 2.0 km leg. It was only the sixth successful title defense in Nationals history, with Kyoyama joining past two-time champions Gotemba J.H.S. (Shizuoka), Nakanojo J.H.S. (Gunma), Fujimi J.H.S. (Gunma), Katsura J.H.S. (Kyoto), and Inami J.H.S. (Hyogo). 47 seconds back in 2nd was Osawano J.H.S. (Toyama), whose fifth runner Shiho Kurokawa , winner of last year's third leg, had the fastest time on her leg again. Kamimura Gakuen J.H.S. (Kagoshima) was 3rd, whose anchor Kirari Takeda , fastest on the second leg win last year, passed 3 people ...
Post a Comment
Read more