With the Tokyo Marathon having canceled due to guidelines written in the pre-vaccine era some of Japan's top marathoners have had to go overseas this season. Men's national record holder Kengo Suzuki (Fujitsu) was at Sunday's Chicago Marathon. Suzuki seemed to be staying calm in the lead group, but when the real move came he didn't have the same kind of closing speed he had at March's Lake Biwa Marathon and was left behind by the lead true. Suzuki ended up 4th in 2:08:50, the fastest time by a Japanese outside Japan so far this year. Seifu Tura Abdiwak (Ethiopia) took 1st in 2:06:12.
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The next day at the Boston Marathon, Tokyo Paralympics women's gold medalist Misato Michishita (Mitsui Sumitomo Kaijo) had a quick turnaround to win Boston's first-ever T11/T12 division race. In the elite women's race Shiho Kaneshige (GRlab Kanto) tailed the lead pack with America Elaina Tabb through the first half of the race according to plan on sub-2:30 pace. But when she began to experience nausea she lost touch with Tabb and started to slow. While Tabb stayed strong to finish 12th in 2:30:33, Kaneshige dropped to 22nd in 2:37:12, run down in the home stretch by a trio of Americans. Diana Kipyokei (Kenya) won in 2:24:45.
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