Skip to main content

Berlin Marathon - Japanese Results

Fresh off a 1:00:17 half marathon national record last weekend and a 28:55 road 10 km the one before, Yuta Shitara (Honda) lived up to expectations at today's Berlin Marathon, trying to go with the lead group and running the first part of the race alone between the first and second groups.

Whatever his plan, Shitara was swallowed up by the second pack, a good turn of events as it was travelling ahead of Japanese national record pace on track for just sub-2:06. Shitara hung with that group through 25 km before his projected time started to creep away, drifting to high-2:06 pace by 30 km, high-2:07 by 35 km, and high-2:08 by 40 km. In the end he was well short of Toshinari Takaoka's 2:06:16 national record, but with a 2:09:03 for 6th Shitara took 24 seconds off his best with the fastest Japanese men's performance in Berlin since Takayuki Inubushi's then-NR 2:06:57 in 1999. And just 8 days after the greatest half marathon performance in Japanese history.


His Honda teammate Hiroaki Sano led the Berlin-experienced Koji Gokaya (JR Higashi NIhon) and fellow sub-61 half marathoner Masato Kikuchi (Team Konica Minolta) on a more conservative, steady pace around 2:10:30 until 30 km, after which point Kikuchi started to slip. Gokaya, like Sano a one-time sub-2:10 runner to date, was next, leaving Sano to gut out a 2:11:24 for 7th. Gokaya was good for 2:14:28 for 13th, with Kikuchi marking a two-minute improvement over his 2017 Tokyo Marathon debut in 2:15:32.

Shitara's time was the 9th sub-2:10 of the year by a Japanese man. Along with Takuya Noguchi (Konica Minolta) and Yuki Kawauchi (Saitama Pref. Gov't) at July's Gold Coast Airport Marathon he was the third to do it outside Japan this year, the most in a single year since 1986. At least four more international marathons and one domestic marathon could see additions to that list, meaning a possible record-setting year for depth at the front end of Japanese men's marathoning. With 2:09 marathons in his first two times out the gate Shitara is one of the ones leading that charge.

Berlin Marathon

Berlin, Germany, 9/24/17
click here for complete results

Men
1. Eliud Kipchoge (Kenya) – 2:03:32
2. Guya Adola (Ethiopia) – 2:03:46 – debut
3. Mosinet Geremew (Ethiopia) – 2:06:09 - PB
4. Felix Kandie (Kenya) – 2:06:13
5. Vincent Kipruto (Kenya) – 2:06:14
6. Yuta Shitara (Japan/Honda) – 2:09:03 – PB
7. Hiroaki Sano (Japan/Honda) – 2:11:24
8. Ryan Vail (U.S.A.) – 2:12:40
9. Liam Adams (Australia) – 2:12:52 - PB
10. Jonny Mellor (Great Britain) – 2:12:57 - PB
-----
13. Koji Gokaya (Japan/JR Higashi Nihon) – 2:14:28
17. Masato Kikuchi (Japan/Konica Minolta) – 2:15:32 – PB

Women
1. Gladys Cherono (Kenya) – 2:20:23
2. Ruti Aga (Ethiopia) - 2:20:41 - PB
3. Valary Ayabei (Kenya) – 2:20:54 - PB
4. Helen Tola (Ethiopia) - 2:22:51 - PB
5. Anna Hahner (Germany) - 2:28:32
6. Catherine Bertone (Italy) - 2:28:34 - PB
7. Sonia Samuels (Great Britain) - 2:29:34
8. Azucena Diaz (Spain) - 2:30:31
9. Catarina Ribeiro (Portugal) - 2:33:13
10. Kim Dillen (Netherlands) - 2:33:24 - PB

photo © 2017 Horst Milde, all rights reserved
text © 2017 Brett Larner, all rights reserved
Labels:

Comments

Metts said…
Looking through the Berlin results, like I do with most big marathons, and especially in Japan, I see huge depth, not just up to 2:20, but beyond, 2:20 to 2:30, 2:30 to 2:40 etc. I see huge depth in the age groups at sub 2:40, sub 2:50, those guys who work full time and still try to run a quality time. While the elite in Japan are very interesting I am very much also interested in the sub elite and all those who work and run quality marathons, especially in Japan. The 60+ record holder comes to mind, even though he has dropped a lot. Maybe the 7 to 10 stretch of good marathons and then we all drop off or Chihro Tanaka comes to mind of those still trying to do quality marathons.
September 25, 2017 at 11:04 AM
TokyoRacer said…
I don't care what Shitara thinks, that Half effort cost him in the final 12k. He would have been much faster had he tapered properly.
September 25, 2017 at 1:56 PM
Metts said…
What about Sano? Is it record? Waiting approval?
September 25, 2017 at 4:22 PM
Brett Larner said…
Sorry, I'm not sure what you are asking. Sano has run 2:09:12, so this was over 2 minutes off his best.

Shitara would probably have run faster with the half, but then he might not be a national record holder today.
September 25, 2017 at 5:24 PM
Metts said…
The Berlin results on Sun/Mon. were showing Sano as first in the 45M age group. They have now revised that.
September 26, 2017 at 8:58 AM
Post a Comment

Most-Read This Week

Japan Announces Complete London Olympics Athletics Team

by Brett Larner Click here for JRN's complete video coverage of the 2012 Japanese Olympic Trials, 27 videos making up nearly three hours of footage. The Japanese Federation and Olympic Committee announced the complete lineup of Japan's team of 48 athletes for this summer's London Olympics track and field events at a press conference on June 11.  The team features 11 national record holders and 18 current national champions and is young overall, with a heavy preponderance of first-time Olympians including a World Junior gold medalist, 13 collegiates and one high schooler.  The Fujitsu corporate team is overwhelmingly the best-represented, boasting 8 Olympic team members, while Chukyo University tops the collegiate list with 3 athletes on the team.  Suzuki, whose Suzuki Hamamatsu AC club team exists outside the corporate league, also has 3 Olympians. No Olympic team selection process is free of controversial decisions, and the omission of women's 10000 m Jr. NR hold
3 comments
Read more

Yamagata-Based Alexander Mutiso Aims to Be #1 in Paris Olympics Marathon

Having been named to the Kenyan men's team for this summer's Paris Olympics, Alexander Mutiso , 27, of the Nanyo, Yamagata-based ND Software corporate team, told the Yamagata Newspaper on May 13 that his goal for the Olympic marathon is "to be #1." Having lived in Yamagata for 10 years, Mutiso has strong attachment to the area and credits its environment for helping him develop, saying, "Ever since I came to Yamagata I've been running well." He left for Kenya on May 14 to join the Kenyan national team training camp, aiming to be in perfect condition when he arrives in Paris for the main event. Mutiso came to Japan in 2015, joining the ND Software team and taking up residence in Nanyo. "I don't like the cold winters in Yamagata so much, but the other seasons are nice." From that base he has grown into the athlete he is now, competing in races across Japan and around the world. Compared to the track, his strengths lie more in long road races
Post a Comment
Read more

'Reinstate Olympic Marathon Prospects Unfairly Disqualified by World Athletics'

A petition for World Athletics to allow the ten men who made the Paris Olympics marathon quota via world rankings but were replaced by unqualified universality place athletes to run. Sent to JRN by the race director of a major marathon.
Post a Comment
Read more