japan running news

Last weekend's Nagoya Women's Marathon and the Tokyo Marathon the weekend before brought the main part of the first year of qualification for the Marathon Grand Championship Race, Japan's L.A. Olympics marathon trials to be held in Nagoya in October, 2027, to an end. There are still a few races like the Nagano Marathon and overseas World Athletics platinum label races this season where people might qualify, but for the most part we're not likely to see many new additions until August's Hokkaido Marathon, where the qualifying period opened last year. As of right now 16 women and 26 men have qualified, although the first woman to make the cut, Ai Hosoda , announced that she was retiring after Tokyo earlier this month. Out of the 16 women to have qualified so far, Mikuni Yada is the fastest with her 2:19:57 debut at Osaka Women's in January. Including Hosoda that makes 2 qualifiers for the Edion corporate team, but Daihatsu has the biggest share of the field so ...

Conditions weren't fantastic at the Tokyo Marathon , a bit too warm and sunny, a bit too windy, a lot too much cedar pollen in the air, but it was still a record-breaking day. Except for a race-morning DNS from men's NR holder Tomoki Suzuki there weren't any surprises in the wheelchair races, where world record holders Catherine Debrunner and Marcel Hug of Switzerland scored solo wins, Debrunner outgunning training partner and all-time #2 Eden Rainbow-Cooper by 4 minutes and Hug winning by 7 minutes in 1:21:09. The women's marathon was a slow burner, starting behind target pace on track for 2:17:00 at 5 km but ramping up all the way to the finish. CR holder and 2-time defending champ Sutume Asefa Kebede and 2022 champion / former WR holder Brigid Kosgei stayed side-by-side the entire way, shadowed by a pack of Ethiopians that dwindled down to just Bertukan Welde . The projected finish got closer and closer to Sutume's 2:15:55 CR, then past it and into 2:14 te...

A native of Uwajishima, Ehime, a new chapter is starting in the life of men's marathon national record holder Kengo Suzuki , 30. On Oct. 8 he announced that he is quitting the Fujitsu corporate team to which he has belonged for 8 years to go independent. His new main sponsor will be a major food product manufacturer, who will support him in his shot at making the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics team. Suzuki ran the National High School Ekiden as a 3rd-year at Uwajishima Higashi H.S. . His 3rd year at Kanagawa University he won the 93rd Hakone Ekiden's most competitive leg, the Second Stage, making him determined to pursue a future as a marathoner. He joined Fujitsu after graduating in 2018, and in January, 2021 played a key role in the team winning its first New Year Ekiden national title in 12 years. A month later he ran 2:04:56 to win the Biwako Mainichi Marathon, a national record that still stands. In recent years he has suffered from a series of injuries, causing his star to l...

photo © 2025 Victah Sailer/PhotoRun Even with a few withdrawals there was a massive group of Japanese athletes at the Berlin Marathon this year, most of the group that typically goes to the Chicago Marathon seeming to opt for Berlin instead. With men's winner Sebastian Sawe taking a shot at the world record, Akira Akasaki , Yuhei Urano and NR holder Kengo Suzuki sat back in a 3rd group targeting the JAAF's 2:06:30 standard for 2028 Olympic marathon trials qualification. The group held steady on that pace, quickly passing and leaving behind Hakone fan favorite Aoi Ota , who went out with a 14:26 opening 5 km only to finish in 2:14:02. Suzuki dropped off, but Akasaki and Urano were together through 30 km until Urano did the same. The top Japanese finisher in the Paris Olympics last year, from there Akasaki had what had to have been an incredibly fun last 12 km, picking faster people off one by one as he rolled on. Ultimately he made it all the way up to 2nd in a 2:06:15 PB. ...

It’s been a big month for Japanese men’s marathoning. Across four races in the 29 days from February 2nd to March 2nd, the Feb. 2 Beppu-Oita Mainichi Marathon , Feb. 9 Nobeoka Nishi Nippon Marathon , Feb. 24 Osaka Marathon and Mar. 2 Tokyo Marathon , from 2:05:39 to 2:09:55 a total of 47 Japanese men broke 2:10 in the marathon. Ethiopia has had 48 under 2:10 so far in 2025, a lot of them in January, and all other countries combined a total of 59, so it’s pretty safe to say Japan is the country that’s been having the biggest impact on World Athletics’ top lists over the last month. Osaka is the heavyweight of the four races, with 28 of the sub-2:10s and four of the five fastest times including both 2:05 performances, Ryota Kondo ’s 2:05:39 debut for 2nd and Kyohei Hosoya ’s 2:05:58 PB. Tokyo was next with eleven sub-2:10 performances led by Tsubasa Ichiyama in a 2:06:00 PB, Beppu-Oita next with seven topped by a 2:06:07 debut by Hiroki Wakabayashi , and Nobeoka producing a 2:09:43 wi...

photos © 2025 Victor Sailer/PhotoRun, all rights reserved It was a bit too cold and windy for really fast times and snow started falling over the last quarter of the race, but that didn't stop the top 4 men at the Osaka Marathon from going under the course record. A 1:02:29 first half kept at least 16 men together with the 2:04:56 Japanese national record in sight, among them NR holder Kengo Suzuki in what he hoped would be a comeback run. By 30 km in 1:28:56 the lead group was down to a dozen, still close to NR pace. At the turnaround point just past 30 km the motorcycle cops leading them too far past the turnaround cone, adding about 15 seconds that ended up burning 2 men worst. And just after that, the big uphill just after that really broke things up. Ethiopian trio Yihunilign Adane , Abdisa Tola and Getaneh Molla broke away after the hill, but with 2:05 in sight debuting sub-61 half marathoner Ryota Kondo and 2:06 man Kyohei Hosoya closed hard. 8 seconds back at 40 km, K...

The Osaka Marathon is Monday, with a live ad-free national broadcast starting at 9:00 a.m. local time on NHK that you'll probably need a VPN to pick up online. No word yet on live results, but maybe try the separate elite field site . We'll post a link if something surfaces, and whatever we can from on the ground in Osaka. Anyway, there are some pretty good story lines this time around. Last year the big one was Izumo Ekiden and National University Ekiden Koku Gakuin University runner Kiyoto Hirabayashi winning with a debut and collegiate record of 2:06:18. That was eclipsed at the start of this month by Hiroki Wakabayashi from Hakone Ekiden winner Aoyama Gakuin University with a 2:06:07 at Beppu-Oita , and with the arguably more talented 2025-26 AGU captain Asahi Kuroda making his debut in Osaka that might not even last til the end of the month. But you want story? Here's story: On Wednesday right after his 21st birthday Wakabayashi and Kuroda's teammate Sena M...

Another week and another big Japanese road race announces its elite field. This year's Osaka Marathon looks set to be a 2:05 race for the men, with Ronald Korir , Bethwel Kibet , Boniface Kimutai , Abdisa Tola , Derseh Kindie and Yihunilign Adane set to pull NR holder Kengo Suzuki to a good comeback and a crew of 2:06 Japanese men led by Paris Olympian Naoki Koyama and Yusuke Nishiyama to faster PBs. Osaka factors into men's team selection for this year's Tokyo World Championships, so expect it to go big. There are 4 sub-61 half marathoners on the debut list too, led by Ryota Kondo with a 1:00:32 at the 2023 National Corporate Half and last year's Corporate Half winner Shunsuke Shikama , 1:00:41. And hot on the heels of Hiroki Wakabayashi 's 2:06:07 collegiate and debut marathon record in Beppu-Oita on Sunday, his Aoyama Gakuin University teammate Asahi Kuroda , the top Japanese man on the Hakone Ekiden's competitive Second Stage last year and even fast...

Most of the action was overseas this weekend, with the Chugoku Jitsugyodan Time Trials meet in Hiroshima being the only really noteworthy domestic event. Dan Kiplangat (JFE Steel) had the fastest time in the six heats of men's 5000 m, beating Kibet Mangata (Mazda) by 0.38 seconds for the win in 13:35.44. 2:06 marathoner Kyohei Hosoya (Kurosaki Harima) was 5th in 13:58.28, with teammate Kakeru Ide (Kurosaki Harima) taking the B-heat in 13:58.34 and high schooler Itsuki Takaishi (Kochi Kogyo H.S.) joining the sub-14 club with a 13:59.04 to win the C-heat. Rose Wangui (Sera H.S.) got her ekiden season prep off to a good start with a 9:00.27 win in the women's 3000 m. With Kenyan Brimin Kipkorir Misoi soloing a 2:06:18 for the win Japanese men went 4-5 at the Sydney Marathon in Australia, Tetsuya Yoroizaka (Asahi Kasei) 4th in 2:08:54 and Ken Nakayama (Honda) 5th in 2:09:23. 2:06 marathoner Hidekazu Hijikata (Asahi Kasei) was only 11th in 2:14:46. On the women's side...

The Tokyo Marathon is back Sunday with two of the biggest names in the sport at the tops of its women's and men's fields, Sifan Hassan and Eliud Kipchoge . The weather is looking great, so expect fast races. Nippon TV is broadcasting it live from 9:00 a.m. to 11:50 a.m. local time, with streaming on TVer , Hulu and Nittere Tada . NTV's international broadcast will be available in over 150 countries, with JRN's Brett Larner on commentary again this year. Leaderboard and tracking will be here . A quick breakdown of the major stories in the race and field listing: The Women's Race After winning her first two marathons in London and Chicago last year, Hassan is the fastest in the Tokyo field at 2:13:44. A win here would put her at 3/3 in Abbott World Marathon Majors titles and halfway to her six stars. Budapest World Championships gold medalist Amane Beriso Shankule and last year's winner Rosemary Wanjiru are her toughest competition, Amane with a 2:14:58 win...