japan running news

by Brett Larner
photo by Martin Lever

Coming in fit off a 1:08:59 win at March's National Corporate Half Marathon Championships, 2011 Daegu World Championships marathon 5th-placer Yukiko Akaba (Team Hokuren) ran a smart, steady and strong race at the Apr. 21 London Marathon, staying near 2:24 pace as the lead group of Kenyan and Ethiopia women fluctuated, sometimes far ahead, sometimes all around her, and on at least two occasions falling behind her.


Initially working with Mai Ito (Team Otsuka Seiyaku) to reach the Federation's sub-2:24 time goal for the Moscow World Championships team, Akaba slipped off track late in the race after Ito dropped behind but continued to press ahead, reeling in five of the seven Africans up front to take 3rd in 2:24:43, her third time running 2:24 in London.

Ito, still hot from a 1:10:00 half marathon PB two weeks ago in Berlin, couldn't keep up with Akaba's bid for a 2:23 and landed 7th in 2:28:37.  The other three Japanese women in the …

by Brett Larner

For the second year in a row, Kenya and Japan battled back and forth for the lead of the International Chiba Ekiden all the way, with Kenya pulling ahead in the final two km to a narrow victory in 2:05:06 to Japan's 2:05:16.  All three Kenyan women on the team won their stages, Gladys Cherono and anchor Joyce Chepkirui setting new records on their legs.  Olympic 10000 m medalist Galen Rupp won his stage to bring the U.S.A close to the leaders but could not improve his team's position, the U.S.A. taking 3rd in 2:06:36.  Russia, the Japanese University Select Team, Canada, New Zealand and hosts Chiba Prefecture rounded out the top eight, with New Zealand's twins Jake and Zane Robertson winning their stages.  Although times were slower than last year in the cold rain the day brought, in all it felt like the highest-level, most truly international edition of Chiba since the switch to the joint men's and women's team format.

The Japanese University team&…

by Brett Larner

Continuing on with its unique and entertaining format of alternating men and women on each stage the Nov. 23 International Chiba Ekiden boasts its strongest overall field since switching from separate men's and women's races, with London Olympics medalists Priscah Jeptoo and Thomas Longosiwa of Kenya and American Galen Rupp crowning the lists.  The race will be broadcast live nationwide on Fuji TV beginning at 1:00 p.m. local time.  Keyhole TV has reportedly not been working recently, leaving limited viewing options for international fans.  JRN will cover the ekiden via Twitter @JRNLive.  Please note that this is not the regular @JRNHeadlines feed, so follow both to be sure to get all updates.  Live results should be available after each stage on the official race website.  Fuji's race website is also worth a check.

Defending Chiba winner and course record holder Kenya is the favorite again this year, with Jeptoo, Longosiwa, Edwin Soi and Philip Mosima the …

http://www.nikkansports.com/sports/athletics/news/f-sp-tp0-20121112-1046022.html

translated and edited by Brett Larner

On Nov. 12 Rikuren, the Japanese Federation, released the entry lists for the Nov. 23 International Chiba Ekiden, a six-stage, 42.195 ekiden featuring teams of three men and three women.  Thirteen national teams along with a Japanese University select team and a team from hosts Chiba Prefecture make up the field.

The Japanese national team includes London Olympics women's 10000 m 9th-place finisher and 5000 m national champion Hitomi Niiya (Team Univ. Ent.) and her Olympic teammate, 10000 m national champion Mika Yoshikawa (Team Panasonic) along with top-ranked collegiate runner Suguru Osako (Waseda Univ.) and past 1500 m and 5000 m national champion Yuichiro Ueno (Team S&B).  The Japanese University team features three members of Izumo Ekiden course record-setters Aoyama Gakuin University, Takehiro Deki, Kazuma Kubota and Ryotaro Otani along with 2009 Ageo Cit…

by Brett Larner

photos by Horst Milde

Japan's results in the London Olympics women's marathon gave a fair account of the state of the sport in the country, an improvement over Beijing with all three women finishing and two under 2:28 versus one finisher in 2:30:19 four years ago, but where Yurika Nakamura (Team Tenmaya) was 13th in Beijing the highest finisher this time, autumn 2011 Yokohama International Women's Marathon winner Ryoko Kizaki (Team Daihatsu), was only 16th.  Despite a fall at a drink station just past halfway, former Team Denso runner Tiki Gelana (Ethiopia) won gold to continue the legacy of Japan-trained African Olympic marathon medalists, outkicking 2011 Daegu World Championships silver medalist Priscah Jeptoo and Russia's Tatyana Petrova Arkhipova, a top-five finisher at both the 2011 and 2012 Tokyo Marathons.

2012 Osaka International Women's Marathon winner Risa Shigetomo (Team Tenmaya) was among the early pacesetters, running in the front line …

by Brett Larner

For only the third time in the last 20 years, the Japanese women's World Championships marathon team came up empty-handed, outdone by a superb team performance from Kenya who marked the first-ever sweep of a world-level marathon.  After a slow first half which saw Azusa Nojiri (Team Daiichi Seimei) take the lead from 8 km to 15 km in a bid to get the pace on track, defending silver medalist Yoshimi Ozaki (Team Daiichi Seimei) faltered when the action began at 33 km, moving backwards from the front of the pack and ultimately finishing 18th as the third woman on the Japanese team.

The other four Japanese women on the team finished in PB order ranging from 5th for Yukiko Akaba (Team Hokuren) to Mai Ito (Team Otsuka Seiyaku) in 22rd.  Nojiri was the first to lose touch with the leaders after the forcing the field into action, but after staying within sight of the front pack she later overtook Ito and ended up just back from Ozaki in 19th.  Akaba and the young Remi Nakaz…