japan running news

A spokesperson has confirmed that former 10000 m and 3000 mSC national record holder Masayuki Nunogami passed away on June 25 after an illness. He was 89. A native of Kumamoto, Nunogami ran the Hakone Ekiden three times starting his 2nd year at Chuo University . At the 31st edition in 1955 he won the Seventh Stage, and the following year he was fastest on the Tenth Stage as well, breaking the finish line tape to give Chuo the overall victory. After graduation Nunogami joined the Riccar corporate team. At the 1956 National Championships he beat nine-time 3000 mSC champion Susumu Takahashi to take the national title for the first time. The same year he ran a then-national record 9:04.2 in the steeplechase. At the following year's Tokyo Championships he ran 33:22.0, breaking the pre-war era NR of 33:25.0 set by Kohei Murakoso in 1936. In 1958 Nunogami won both the 3000 mSC and 5000 m national titles and took silver in the Tokyo Asian Games 3000 mSC. He was also a member of two Ne...

The Hokuren Federation of Agricultural Cooperatives has announced that it's women's running team will be disbanded in March, 2023 at the end of the 2022-23 season. Founded in 1987, the Hokuren team qualified for the National Corporate Women's Ekiden 26 times and produced notable athletes including Yukiko Akaba , a 2008 Olympian in the 5000 m and 10000 m. It failed to make last year's National Corporate Women's Ekiden, finishing 29th at the qualifying race. In addition to competing in races, the team regularly held educational session and running events for school children and the general public to help contribute to society by spreading the love of the sport. Its activities will remain unchanged during the 2022-23 season and will still compete as usual. It will also continue to support the Hokuren Distance Challenge series of track meets held across Hokkaido every summer. source article: https://news.yahoo.co.jp/articles/32a9115eac6fa7fc2d7ac2b2a8442e4a76c21e8d tra...

http://www.hochi.co.jp/sports/etc/20150225-OHT1T50141.html translated by Brett Larner This week the Federation announced the Japanese national team for the Mar. 28 World Cross Country Championships in Guiyang, China.  Making the senior women's 8 km squad for the first time is the Star of the North, Hokkaido's native daughter Miho Shimizu (24, Team Hokuren).  Her first time making a Japanese national team, Shimizu was hopeful as she said, "It's a great honor.  I want to run an aggressive race, experience the level and strength of the world's top athlete and apply what I learn there to track season." At the first of the two selection races, the Feb. 8 Chiba International Cross Country Meet she ran 29:30 for 8 km to place 5th overall as the 4th Japanese woman.  At the second selection race, the Feb. 21 Fukuoka International Cross Country Meet, she took 3rd overall in the 6th in 20:02, scoring her place on the team by finishing as the 2nd Japanese woman. ...

http://www.hokkaido-np.co.jp/news/sports/453005.html translated by Brett Larner At a Mar. 27 press conference in Sapporo the Hokuren women's distance team announced changes to its lineup for the 2013-14 season.   Tsuyoshi Takita , 49, head coach since 2010, will resign from his position to be replaced by current assistant coach Takashi Ota , 36.  Ota spoke to reporters of his ambitions for the team, saying, "I want to cultivate athletes who will make the national team." Ota is a Hokkaido native from Shiraoi, Iburi.  After graduating from Tomakomai Minami H.S. he attended Sapporo Gakuin University before going on to a pro career with the NEC team.  In 2003 he transferred to the Konica Minolta team where he had great success at the half marathon and on the ekiden circuit.  He became assistant coach at Hokuren in 2011 following his retirement from competition. Of his immediate goals for the team Ota said, "We will aim to clear the 2:20:10 qualifying standar...

http://www.asahi.com/sports/spo/HOK201109210003.html translated by Brett Larner Daegu World Championships women's marathon 5th-place finisher Yukiko Akaba  (Team Hokuren), the top Japanese finisher in the Championships race, gave a press conference Sept. 20 at Hokuren's headquarters in Sapporo, Hokkaido to talk about her renewed motivation after her Daegu performance and her plans for making the London Olympics team. Appearing together with her coach and husband Shuhei , Akaba talked about her race, saying, "At this summer's World Championships I didn't run the way I hoped, but I think it was a good performance.  Still, I'm really disappointed not to have won a medal."  Akaba also missed out on securing a place on the London Olympics team, but explained, "Looking toward my ultimate goal of an Olympic medal, Daegu helped me find a few weak points in my race and now I know what I need to work on tightening up."* Shuhei confirmed that Akaba ...

by Brett Larner Six months ago Yukiko Akaba was just an ace runner on a corporate team, a strong athlete with some a few good results in university but nothing truly noteworthy other than continuing to run after giving birth in August, 2006. When the 2007 fall and winter season came around, the 28 year old Akaba suddenly let loose with a string of impressive performances and major PBs culminating in last weekend's Jitsugyodan Half Marathon , where she ran a 3 minute 12 second PB of 1:08:11 to break Mizuki Noguchi's course record and become the 3rd-fastest Japanese woman of all time in the half marathon behind former national record holder Noguchi and current national record holder Kayoko Fukushi. Her time is also the 2nd-fastest in the world so far this year, and her intention to run the 10000 m in the Beijing Olympics and to debut in the marathon next winter marks her as a runner to watch on the world scene. Akaba was born in 1979 in Tochigi Prefecture. She attended Josai Uni...

http://www.jiji.com/jc/c?g=spo_30&k=2007122300155 http://www.daily.co.jp/general/2007/12/24/0000780564.shtml Hot on the heels of recovering from childbirth to defeat Catherine Ndereba in the International Chiba Ekiden last month and finish 2nd to 10000 m national record holder Yoko Shibui on the 10 km anchor leg of last week`s All-Japan Jitsugyodan Women`s Ekiden, Yukiko Akaba of Team Hokuren ran 31:23.27 in the women`s 10000 m at the Nittadai Track and Field Meet in Yokohama on Dec. 23 to meet the Beijing Olympics A standard of 31:45:00. This performance broke Akaba`s PB by 30 seconds. "I ran within myself," commented Akaba after the race. "I will do it again next year at the Olympic Trials." Kayoko Fukushi of Team Wacoal, who is scheduled to run the Osaka International Marathon in January next year, was entered in the 10000 m at the Nittadai meet but did not run. Team Wacoal coach Tadayuki Nagayama stated that Fukushi did not attend the meet in order to av...