Kentaro Sato Runs 2nd-Fastest JPN 400 m Ever for Gold - Asian Athletics Championships Day 2 Highlights

Japan dominated day 2 of the Bangkok Asian Athletics Championships Thursday, winning 3 gold, 6 silver and 3 bronze medals across 10 events.

The biggest news was in the men's 400 m final, where Kentaro Sato ran an all-time JPN #2 45.00 for the win and Fuga Sato an all-time JPN #5 45.13 for silver. Both were well back from Asian record holder Yousef Ahmed Masrahi of Saudi Arabia coming into the home straight, but with stunning kicks they pulled up into the medals, in Fuga's case going all the way from 5th to 2nd. Masrahi was in the bronze position in a season best 45.19.

Another 1-2 finish for Japan came in the women's 10000 m. Haruka Kokai was part of a breakaway trio with Kenya-born Kazakhstani Caroline Chepkoech Kipkirui and Mongolian NR holder Munkhzaya Bayartsogt, while Momoka Kawaguchi held back in the second group warier of the heat and humidity. On track to break her own NR, Munkhzaya did all the work up front, burning off Kipkirui who ultimately dropped out.

At 7000 m Kokai went to the front, holding the pace almost perfectly off Munkhzaya's 16:29.25 first half to take gold in 32:59.36. Kawaguchi pushed hard over the last 3000 m and overtook Munkzhaya on the last lap, taking silver in 33:18.72. Munkhzaya took bronze in 33:24.79, 7 seconds under the NR that she had set way back in 2014.

In the decathlon, Yuma Maruyama performed well over the second day of competition to move up from 3rd to gold. Teammate Shun Taue also had a good back half, moving up to 4th overall.

The women's hammer throw had Japan going 2-3, the American-born Joy McArthur taking silver at 66.56 m and Raika Murakami silver at 64.17 m. All 6 of winner Zhao Jin's throws went further than McArthur's best, her 2nd attempt of 69.39 m ultimately being her best effort but also throwing over 69 m on her 3rd and 5th attempt.

Likewise in the women's 100 m final, Asuka Terada and Masumi Aoki went 2-3 as they fought through the tail end of a passing squall. Jyothi Yarraji of India passed both for gold in 13.09 -0.1 m/s, Terada next in 13.13 and Aoki in bronze in 13.26.

In 3rd on his last attempt, triple jumper Hikaru Ikehata closed with a 16.73 m +0.6 m/s jump to steal silver from South Korea's Jangwoo Kim. Indian A.A. Narangolintevida scored gold with a 4th jump of 16.92 m +0.7 m/s.

Graduate student Yusuke Takahashi scored a rare Japanese men's 1500 m medal, breaking away for the win over the last lap but overtaken by India's Ajay Kumar Saroj coming into the home straight and ending up in the silver position. NR holder Kazuki Kawamura couldn't cope with the field's last kick and finished out of the medals.

In the men's hammer throw Shota Fukuda was a surprise bronze over Japanese favorite Ryota Kashimura, throwing 71.80 m on his 2nd attempt to Kashimura's 71.24 m 4th-round effort. China's Wang Qi was solidly in gold at 72.13 m, with Uzbekistan's Sukhrob Khodjaev just edging Fukuda for silver at 71.83 m.

The women's high jump was one of the few events without a Japanese medalist, Nagisa Takahashi tying for 4th after clearing 1.83 m. Kazakhstan's Kristina Ovchinnikova won gold after making 1.86 m on her first attempt.

The women's 400 m also saw Japan come up empty-handed, Haruna Kuboyama 4th in 53.80 and Nanako Matsumoto 5th in 53.89. Sri Lanka's Nadeesha Ramanayaka was well ahead with a PB 52.61 for gold.

The biggest news in qualifying rounds was in the men's 100 m. Toyo University's Hiroki Yanagita ran a PB 10.10 -0.5 m/s to lead the field of qualifiers by 0.08, and he did it looking around after halfway and coasting in over the last 15 to 20 m. Another run like that and he's going to be joining an exclusive club in Japanese men's sprinting. National champ Ryuichiro Sakai won his heat in 10.18 +0.0 m/s, tying Saudi Arabia's Abdullah Akbar Mohammed for the 2nd-best time in the field.

Complete results are available here. The Asian Athletics Championships continue through Sunday.

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,

Police Arrest 20-Year-Old Man Charged With Assaulting Female Runner at Popular Tokyo Running Spot

A 20-year-old man has been arrested on charges of sexually assaulting a female runner along the banks of the Tama River in Ota Ward, Tokyo. "I've been stuck at home because of the coronavirus, so I wanted to go for a walk and move my body a bit," the man told police. Local resident Hirai Muroyama , 20, of no known occupation, was arrested on charges of sexual assault. He is accused of acts including grabbing the breasts of a woman in her 20s at around 10 p.m. on May 31 along the banks of the Tama River. According to police, the woman was taking a break in her run when Muroyama approached her silently from behind and grabbed her breasts before running away. Under police interrogation Muroyama told investigators, "I've been stuck at home because of the coronavirus, so I wanted to go out for a walk and move my body. I'd had a few drinks and was feeling pretty hype. She was totally my type." source article: https://news.tbs.co.jp/newseye/tbs_newsey

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