Skip to main content

Rui Aoki Wins National University Men's Half Marathon - Weekend Results


Yuka Ando's win at the Nagoya Women's Marathon was the big news of the weekend, but there were other high-level races happening, even in Nagoya. Held in parallel with the marathon, the Nagoya City Half Marathon saw Australians Natalie Rule and Ed Goddard take easy wins by about 2.5 minutes each, Rule in 1:13:57 and Goddard in 1:04:01. The new Biwako Marathon also had a non-Japanese winner, China's Yousheng Guan scoring 1st in 2:14:58 with Japan's Hirohito Sugai next in 2:16:40. Mikiko Ota won the women's race in 2:50:44. The Shizuoka Marathon returned for its first running in five years, with club runner Shumpei Oda leading the top 7 men under 2:20 in 2:15:36. Women's winner Remi Tanaka ran 2:41:23, beating runner-up Ayumi Sano by exactly 7 minutes.

And in Tokyo, Rui Aoki continued what has been a great season so far for Koku Gakuin University with a win at the National University Men's Half Marathon. Aoki and Hiro Konda of Chuo Gakuin University were way out front of the rest of the field, Aoki pulling away for the win in 1:02:06 and Konda next in 1:02:19. Shinsaku Kudo of Waseda University out kicked Chuo University's Hinata Shirakawa for 3rd, 1:02:29 to 1:02:30, with winner Aoki's teammate Hikaru Tsujihara 5th in 1:02:37.

Although Aoki's winning time was relatively conservative, depth was like always:

sub-1:03 - 11
sub-1:04 - 69
sub-1:05 - 144
sub-1:06 - 242
sub-1:07 - 335
sub-1:08 - 436
sub-1:09 - 510
sub-1:10 - 594

National University Men's Half Marathon

Tachikawa, Tokyo, 10 March 2024

1. Rui Aoki (Koku Gakuin Univ.) - 1:02:06
2. Hiro Konda (Chuo Gakuin Univ.) - 1:02:19
3. Shinsaku Kudo (Waseda Univ.) - 1:02:29
4. Hinata Shirakawa (Chuo Univ.) - 1:02:30
5. Hikaru Tsujihara (Koku Gakuin Univ.) - 1:02:37
6. Shota Shiode (Aoyama Gakuin Univ.) - 1:02:46
7. Eiki Kogure (Soka Univ.) - 1:02:48
8. Yu Fukahori (Tokyo Nogyo Univ.) - 1:02:50
9. Yosuke Harada (Tokyo Nogyo Univ.) - 1:02:58
10. Naoyuki Ikoma (Kokushikan Univ.) - 1:02:58
11. Takumu Kudo (Chuo Gakuin Univ.) - 1:02:50
12. Teruki Shimada (Teikyo Univ.) - 1:03:00
13. Hiroki Yamanaka (Teikyo Univ.) - 1:03:02
14. Goki Takayama (Koku Gakuin Univ.) - 1:03:03
15. Kaisei Yasuhara (Komazawa Univ.) - 1:03:04
16. Haruki Abe (Chuo Univ.) - 1:03:04
17. Kosei Shiraishi (Aoyama Gakuin Univ.) - 1:03:05
18. Kenshin Ebisawa (Juntendo Univ.) - 1:03:08
19. Kosei Aoki (Koku Gakuin Univ.) - 1:03:09
20. Ryo Yoshida (Soka Univ.) - 1:03:12
21. Yujiro Kanno (Tokyo Kokusai Univ.) - 1:03:13
22. Shun Inami (Chuo Gakuin Univ.) - 1:03:15
23. Riku Hirota (Teikyo Univ.) - 1:03:17
24. Akito Noda (Hosei Univ.) - 1:03:17
25. Ryusei Kawachi (Tokyo Kokusai Univ.) - 1:03:18
-----
50. Taisei Kobayashi (Teikyo Univ.) - 1:03:38
75. Sora Saito (Soka Univ.) - 1:04:12
100. Hideyoshi Haseda (Yamanashi Gakuin Univ.) - 1:04:31
125. Rintaro Motoyama (Koku Gakuin Univ.) - 1:04:48
150. Shigeharu Takahashi (Heisei Kokusai Univ.) - 1:05:03
175. Shion Nishinaka (Heisei Kokusai Univ.) - 1:05:25
200. Hiroto Sakamoto (Surugadai Univ.) - 1:05:38
225. Takumi Tominaga (Takushoku Univ.) - 1:05:52
250. Hikaru Tomomura (Yamanashi Gakuin Univ.) - 1:06:03
300. Ren Waseda (Surugadai Univ.) - 1:06:39
350. Shuta Arai (Asia Univ.) - 1:07:10
400. Takumi Sakakibara (Reitaku Univ.) - 1:07:37
450. Makoto Muroi (Tokyo Nogyo Univ.) - 1:08:12
500. Kido Morimoto (Juntendo Univ.) - 1:08:55
550. Takuma Yoshida (Tokyo Kokusai Univ.) - 1:09:29
594. Shintaro Kinoshita (Shinshu Univ.) - 1:09:59

© 2024 Brett Larner, all rights reserved

Buy Me A Coffee

Comments

Most-Read This Week

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,