19-Year-Old Ryuji Miura Breaks 3000m Steeplechase NR to Kick Off Tokyo Olympics Athletics Day One

Juntendo University 2nd-year Ryuji Miura is the most exciting thing to have appeared on the Japanese scene in the last year, seeming to come from our of nowhere to just miss the 3000 m steeplechase NR last summer at age 18, breaking Suguru Osako's U20 half marathon national record last fall, and then rewriting the 3000 m SC NR twice since turning 19 in February this year. In his first real race against international competition Miura kicked off track and field action at the Tokyo Olympics by taking 6 seconds off his own 3000 mSC NR to finish 2nd in the opening heat in 8:09.92. Miura's time was fast enough to have medaled at all but two past Olympics and auto-qualifying him for what looks to be a very fast final, making him the first Japanese man to make an Olympic steeple final since 1972

Miura was calm and relaxed throughout the race, staying in the top 5 the whole way and moving to the front when he needed to. Over the last lap he challenged 2019 Doha World Championships silver medalist Lamecha Girma of Ethiopia for the lead, but while Girma got away in the end Miura looked like he still had more in him for the final, easing up well before the finish line. His time was the 2nd-fastest among the 15 qualifiers for the final, but whatever he manages to do in Monday's final, Miura's opening heat was one of the best Japanese Olympic performances ever. "I want to show everyone that I've got the strength to run an even better time," he said post-race. "No matter how tough a race it is I'll be up there and make it a race to the end."

This year marked the first time since the 1964 Tokyo Olympics that three Japanese men qualified in the 3000 mSC. The other two Japanese men, Ryoma Aoki and Kosei Yamaguchi, didn't advance, Aoki finishing 9th in the second heat and Yamaguchi 12th in the third.

In the men's high jump, NR holder Naoto Tobe advanced to the final by clearing 2.28 m. Takashi Eto failed to qualify, clearing only 2.21 m. Hiromu Yamauchi was the only one of the three Japanese men in the 400 m hurdles heats to move on, finishing 3rd in the second heat to place 16th overall among the semifinal qualifiers. Takatoshi Abe and Kazuki Kurokawa were each 6th in their heat and did not advance.

In the evening session, 20-year-old Ririka Hironaka led the first heat of the women's 5000 m past 4000 m at a fraction over 3:00/km. When the big move came she couldn't keep up and dropped to 9th. But with a PB of 14:55.87 Hironaka made it through to the final on time, just the third Japanese woman in history to make an Olympic 5000 m final. The other two Japanese women, Kaede Hagitani and Nozomi Tanaka, both ran PBs too but failed to move on.

In the first medal even, the men's 10000 m, all-time Japanese top two Akira Aizawa and Tatsuhiko Ito didn't have the same kind of spark as either Mura or Hironaka, hanging back in the second half of the pack despite a slow early pace and falling off when it got quicker. Aizawa lasted longer, finishing 17th in 28:18.37 and Ito 22nd of 23 finishers in 29:01.31. Ethiopian Selemon Barega took gold in 27:43.22, downing Ugandan duo Joshua Cheptegei and Jacob Kiplimo who took silver and bronze in 27:43.63 and 27:43.88.

Ichiyama 8th at Copenhagen Marathon

Currently the #10-ranked Japanese man in the marathon with the fastest-ever domestic time at the elite Beppu-Oita Mainichi Marathon, Tsubasa Ichiyama (Sunbelx) made his international debut at Sunday's Copenhagen Marathon , literally an international debut as it was his first time outside the country. Ichiyama hoped to be in contention to break the 2:08:23 CR and go for the win, and with cool and breezy conditions ran easy in the lead group through 30 km. But something ate away at almost everyone as time went by, several people in the lead men's and women's groups saying humidity, and past 30 km Ichiyama fell off. Falling as low as 9th, he rallied after 40 km to finish 8th in 2:13:07. "It was different than in Japanese races," he said. "I'm used to bigger packs and more even pacing, but this was a kind of racing I hadn't done before. There's a lot to think about. I didn't feel like I was sweating a lot, but I got really thirsty and started sk

Wanjiru Breaks Own MR, Fuwa and Ishida Return - Kanto Regionals Day 1 Highlights

Japan's best college meet kicked off Thursday at Tokyo's National Stadium at the 103rd Kanto Region University Track and Field Championships . Looking like she was doing a controlled tempo run, 2nd-yr Sarah Wanjiru (Daito Bunka Univ.) lapped the entire field to win the women's 10000 m in a meet record 32:02.87, almost 15 seconds under the record she last year in her debut. 3rd-yr Aoi Takahashi (Josai Univ.) was 2nd in 33:29.22 and 2nd-yr Nana Nagashima (Josai Kokusai Univ.) 3rd in a PB 33:30.28, but the other main news alongside Wanjiru's new record was the return of collegiate 10000 m record holder Seira Fuwa (Takushoku Univ.) in her first 10000 m in 19 months. Fuwa hung at the back of the chase pack for the first half, made a move to lead it in the second half, and ultimately faded to 9th in 33:40.20. Every comeback has to start somewhere. The D1 men's 10000 m had a tight group up front with the top 6 all finishing within 6 seconds and under 28:10. 3rd-yr Jam

Two-Time Olympic Marathon Medalist Erick Wainaina Referred to Prosectors on Suspicion of Assault

According to investigators, two-time Olympic marathon medalist Erick Wainaina has had his case referred to prosecutors after allegedly injuring a railway employee by striking him in the face at a station in Setagaya, Tokyo. Wainaina, 50, was the bronze medalist in the marathon at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics and won silver in the 2000 Sydney Olympics. Wainaina is suspected of assaulting a woman in her late teens and a male Tokyo Denentoshi Line employee by hitting them in the face during an altercation at Komazawa University Station in March this year, resulting in minor injuries to the man's face. According to investigators, the incident began on the train between Wainaina and the woman, and after getting off at Komazawa University Station he hit her in the face when she asked him to go to the station office with her to report it. When the male railway employee responded to the situation Wainaina reportedly hit him too. In response to questioning Wainaina is said to have answered,

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