Skip to main content

Inoue Wins First Japanese Men's Asian Games Marathon Gold in 32 Years



Ranked #1 thanks to his 2:06:54 breakthrough at February's Tokyo Marathon, Hiroto Inoue became the first Japanese man to win an Asian Games marathon since 1986 as he took the first gold medal in athletics at the Jakarta Asian Games in a sprint finish in 2:18:22.

Despite the hot and humid conditions, 26˚C and 79% humidity at the start and climbing from there, it was a pretty frustrating race to watch, to be honest, with a 4:00 first km and a low-2:20s projected finishing time until well into the second half. On paper the only real competition for Inoue and teammate Hayato Sonoda were the African-born Bahraini pair Abdi Abdo and El Hassan El Abbassi, but despite that the two Japanese runners stayed tucked into the pack as Japan-based Mongolian national record holder Ser-Od Bat-Ochir made a few attempts to get it in gear.

Bat-Ochir did succeed in shaking it down to a pack of 8, but it took a surprise visit from Thailand's Tony Payne, who surged up from far back to overtake the leaders at around 25 km, to really get things moving. After 2:19 man Payne went to the front Sonoda responded with the first real sustained push of the race, leading all the way to 37 km and getting the projected finish time under 2:20 for the first time with a 1:55:57 split at 35 km.

Last time around in Incheon Japan's Kohei Matsumura and Yuki Kawauchi fell victim to a passive race strategy against Kenyan-born Bahraini Ali Hassan Mahboob, leaving it to a track finish and getting duly outkicked. Up this time against 21-year-old Ethiopian Bahraini Abdo, who ran 2:08:32 earlier this year in Rome, and the Moroccan-born El Abbassi, gold medalist in the 10000 m in Incheon, Inoue steadfastly refused to take the initiative. As the pack shrank down to just the Japanese and Bahraini pairs and China's solo Bujie Duo it looked all but certain that it would come down to a replay this time around.

Without warning, Abdo dropped back from the lead group. El Abbasssi, who never looked comfortable and constantly fidgeted in a way reminiscent of his native countryman, two-time world champion Jaouad Gharib of Morocco, motioned for Abdo to come back. Abdo answered but couldn't sustain his position, dropping back again and then out of the race to leave four in contention for the medals.

With 5 km to go El Abbassi made his move, surging away from Sonoda and Duo with only Inoue in tow. And with that it was down to two separate races, El Abbassi and Inoue for gold and Sonoda and Duo for bronze. Both Inoue and El Abbassi made a few small feints over the last 5 km, but no real move came until coming off the back corner of the track when both men launched their last sprints. On the home straight El Abbassi tried to pass on the inside, putting up his right hand to push Inoue aside but stumbling and losing a stride.

Inoue crossed the line first, both men credited with the same time but Inoue bringing the gold back to Japan and Asia. "I was pretty confident about my last kick," he said post-race, having set a new 5000 m PB of  13:38.44 this spring post-Tokyo breakthrough. "I knew if it came down to that I'd win." The Bahraini team was reported to have filed a protest that Inoue had fouled El Abbassi in the home straight, but the referee dismissed their claims. Judge for yourself.


Back in the bronze race, Sonoda and Duo battled each other over the last 5 km, but despite a difference of 4 minutes in their bests it was Duo who broke free to take the last medal in 2:18:48, a strong performance in a race where he looked comfortable and in control almost the entire way.  Sonoda was 4th in 2:19:04. With his only previous international marathon experience being a 2:23:29 win at the 2016 Austin Marathon Sonoda commented, "I really felt what the level of competition is like at the world level. Well, it's only Asia, but still. 4th is disappointing, but the experience of running in this kind of heat is going to help me grow."


Out of the four current main contenders for the Tokyo 2020 team Inoue is generally considered the one with the best chance of going all the way. A win in similar conditions today solidifies that position and has to be a boost of confidence after his failed race at the London World Championships last summer. It's pretty likely the plan was to do the absolute minimum necessary to win, to get the experience running in heat and humidity without overdoing it and suffering some longterm after-effects. But Inoue's tactics here cut it a little too close, and if he hopes to succeed two years from now against a tougher crowd in the Tokyo Olympics Inoue is going to have bring back the assertiveness he showed in Tokyo in February. As a practice run today was a success, but as a race it just won't cut it.

Jakarta Asian Games Men's Marathon

Jakarta, Indonesia, 8/25/18
complete results

1. Hiroto Inoue (Japan) - 2:18:22
2. El Hassan El Abbassi (Bahrain) - 2:18:22
3. Bujie Duo (China) - 2:18:48
4. Hayato Sonoda (Japan) - 2:19:04
5. Ser-Od Bat-Ochir (Mongolia) - 2:23:42
6. Kang Bom Ri (North Korea) - 2:23:42
7. Guojian Dong (China) - 2:23:55
8. Tony Ah Thit Payne (Thailand) - 2:24:52
9. Andrew Petrov (Uzbekistan) - 2:26:52
10. Chol Pak (North Korea) - 2:29:07
-----
DNF - Abdi Abdo (Bahrain)

© 2018 Brett Larner, all rights reserved

Buy Me A Coffee
Labels:

Comments

Andrew Armiger said…
Good report + analysis!
Fun to follow Inoue's trajectory.
August 25, 2018 at 9:49 PM
Post a Comment

Most-Read This Week

Nagoya Asian Games Test Event Canceled After Insulation Falls From Venue Ceiling

A section of insulation material fell from the ceiling of Nagoya Kinjo Futo Arena, the official venue for squash competition at September's Nagoya Asian Games. There were no injuries, but the city suspended use of the arena until its safety could be guaranteed, resulting in the cancelation of the Asian Games squash test event which was scheduled to have begun on May 14. It is not yet clear whether the arena will be usable for the Asian Games as planned. According to city officials, arena staff found that the insulation material had fallen onto a work walkway 13 m above the ground on the night of May 11. The fallen material was 3.6 m long, 50 cm wide and 2.5 km thick, and was found to be waterlogged. The cause of the accident is unknown, but it is possible that it was caused by rainwater leaking in from the roof. The same insulation material is installed across the entire ceiling, and the city plans to check for the extent of the possible flooding. Asked whether the arena will be re...
1 comment
Read more

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...
41 comments
Read more

Chisato Fukushima Selected as First Women`s 100 m Olympian in 56 Years

http://headlines.yahoo.co.jp/hl?a=20080706-00000027-yom-spo http://www.47news.jp/CN/200807/CN2008070601000467.html translated and edited by Brett Larner On July 6 Rikuren announced that it has added women`s 100 m runner Chisato Fukushima (20, Hokkaido HiTec AC) to the Beijing Olympic team. Fukushima will become the first Japanese woman to compete in the Olympic 100 m since Ayako Yoshikawa ran in the 1952 Helsinki Olympics. Fukushima broke the Olympic B-standard of 11.42 with her national record-tying 11.36 mark at April`s Oda Memorial Meet. Although she won June`s National Track and Field Championships, Fukushima was not initially selected for the team as she did not meet the Olympic A-standard. In light of her victory at today`s Nambu Memorial Meet in Hakodate, Hokkaido, Rikuren reversed its decision and added her to the Olympic team lineup. Fukushima reacted to the news of her Beijing ticket by saying, "It hasn`t really hit me that it`s real yet. I would be honored to be the tri...
Post a Comment
Read more