japan running news

by Brett Larner

Despite gusty winds and intermittent rain the Haspa Hamburg Marathon saw fast times all around, particularly on the men's side where Ethiopian-born Shumi Dechasa (Bahrain) negative-splitted a PB 2:06:44 for the win over pre-race favorite Eric Ndiema (Kenya). Through halfway in 1:03:32, Dechasa and Ndiema were alone and side-by-side by 35 km before Dechasa threw down and opened a 17-second gap for the win. First-timer Philemon Rono (Kenya) was another 7 seconds back in 2:07:08, a solid debut to get onto the podium.

Further back, Japan's Yuki Kawauchi (Saitama Pref. Gov't), appearing with support from JRN, ran a rare time trial performance, sticking close to dedicated pacer Wilfred Kigen (Kenya) on track to just break 2:09 in a bid both to deal with the jet lag issues that have so far troubled his international racing and, if successful, to surpass national record holder Toshinari Takaoka and become the first Japanese man to clear 2:10 seven times in his car…

by Brett Larner



Yuki Kawauchi (Saitama Pref. Gov't) returns to German soil for the first time in two years at Sunday's Haspa Hamburg Marathon.  Running with support from JRN, Kawauchi faces an ideally-poised field including 2:05 man William Kipsang (Kenya), 2:06 runners Laban Korir (Kenya) and Eric Ndiema (Kenya), 2:07-level runners Shumi Dechasa (Bahrain) and Felix Keny (Kenya), sub-hour half marathon first-time marathoners Silas Kipruto (Kenya) and Lucas Rotich (Kenya) and more in a race set to go off with a 1:03-flat first half.  Appearing at the pre-race press conference on May 2, Kawauchi was clear and honest about his goals:
"Up to now I've broken 2:10 six times in Asia and have run 2:10 and 2:11 in Australia, but the best I've done in Europe and North America when I've been racing with jet lag is only 2:12.  I view the marathon as a sport of learning, one where you can keep applying the new knowledge you gain each time to your future races.  Hamburg wil…

San Diego, U.S.A., 6/2/13
click here for complete results

Women
1. Edna Kiplagat (Kenya) - 1:08:56
2. Georgina Rono (Kenya) - 1:09:03
3. Firehiwot Dado (Ethiopia) - 1:09:46
4. Embet Bedada (Ethiopia) - 1:09:56
5. Paskalia Kipkoech (Kenya) - 1:10:14
6. Asami Kato (Japan/Team Panasonic) - 1:10:49
7. Yuko Watanabe (Japan/Team Edion) - 1:11:40
8. Lidia Simon (Romania) - 1:12:36
9. Deena Kastor (U.S.A.) - 1:15:51
10. Joanne Zeiger (U.S.A.) - 1:16:45

by Brett Larner

Switching last year to a mass-participation format and billing itself as the world's largest women-only marathon, the Nagoya Women's Marathon returns this year as the final domestic selection race for the Moscow World Championships team.  Relative to its male counterpart, last weekend's Lake Biwa Mainichi Marathon, Nagoya's domestic field is somewhat impoverished, all the more so with the regrettably foreseeable withdrawal of 2012 Osaka International Women's Marathon winner Risa Shigetomo (Team Tenmaya) with injury, and with all but one of the Japanese women in the field coming in at the 2:26 level or above it is hard to see there being a serious bid for the Federation's 2:23:59 time requirement for automatic nomination to the Moscow team.

That one person is of course national record holder and Athens Olympics gold medalist Mizuki Noguchi (Team Sysmex), who for the second year in a row pulled out of Osaka in January and refocused on Nagoya.  At …

by Brett Larner

In its second year as a mass-participation women-only marathon the Mar. 10 Nagoya Women's Marathon released its elite field on Feb. 21.  For Japanese women it is the last chance to make the 2013 World Championships in a domestic race, with Boston and London remaining within in the qualifying window.  National record holder Mizuki Noguchi (Team Sysmex) tops the list after having pulled out of the Osaka International Women's Marathon for the second year in a row.  She made a comeback to the marathon in Nagoya last year after her Osaka pullout.  Will she start in Nagoya this year?  Place your bets now.  London Olympians Risa Shigetomo (Team Tenmaya) and Ryoko Kizaki (Team Daihatsu), both winners of other domestic women's marathons, and last year's Tokyo Marathon 4th-placer Eri Okubo (Second Wind AC) round out the top end of the domestic field.

The overseas field is strong.  Kenyan Georgina Rono looks like the favorite for the win with a 2:21:39 in Frankfur…