japan running news

http://www.iaaf.org/news/report/kawasaki-bartoletta-vadlejch

by Brett Larner



On what will no doubt be one of the last summery days of the season, the 2010 Super Meet in Kawasaki took place under sunny skies on Sept. 19. Many of the major international stars including high jumper Blanka Vlasic (Croatia) and sprinter Christophe Lemaitre (France) duly picked up late-season wins, while all but two of the top Japanese entrants fell short of 1st. A summary of the results:

2010 Super Meet in Kawasaki - Top Results
click here for complete results
click event headers for video
Women's 800 m
1. Elena Kofanova (Russia) - 2:00.46
2. Tetiana Petliuk (Ukraine) - 2:01.01
3. Ruriko Kubo (Team Deodeo) - 2:03.09

Men's 400 m
1. Nery Brenes (Costa Rica) - 46.14
2. Sean Wroe (Australia) - 46.27
3. Yusuke Ishitsuka (Team Mizuno) - 46.30

Men's 100 m
1. Christophe Lemaitre (France) - 10.26
2. Wallace Spearmon (U.S.A.) - 10.47
3. Ramil Guliyev (Azerbaijan) - 10.50

Women's 100 m
1. Tianna Madison (U.S.A.) - 11.32
2. Chisato Fukushima (Hokkaido HiTec AC) - 11.48
3. Gloria As…

by Brett Larner

The big overseas names cleaned up at the Super Track and Field Meet in Kawasaki on Sept. 23, 2009. Tyson Gay, Allyson Felix, Gary Kikaya, Dwight Thomas, Perdita Felicien, Felix Sanchez, Tatiana Lebedeva, Teemu Wirkkala, Reese Hoffa and others all consigned the hosts' national champions to the runner-up spot or lower. Only women's 400 m national champion Asami Tanno (Team Natureal) and pole vaulter Takafumi Suzuki (Tokai Univ.) took the top spots in their events, while pole vault national champion Daichi Sawano (Team Nishi) and high jump national champion Naoyuki Daigo (Team Fujitsu) struggled with apparent injuries and could not clear the bar even once. Some highlights:



Tyson Gay ran a relatively desultory 10.13 to win the 100 m, running even with national champion Masashi Eriguchi (Waseda Univ.) and Beijing Olympics 4x100 m relay bronze medalist Naoki Tsukahara (Team Fujitsu) until accelerating in the final stage just enough to ensure the win. Eriguchi appeared …

Broadcaster TBS will present the 2009 Super Track and Field Meet in Kawasaki, featuring Tyson Gay, Allyson Felix, Felix Sanchez and a host of Japan's top track and field athletes, from 2:53 to 4:43 p.m. on Sept. 23, Japan time. International viewers should be able to watch the meet live online for free by clicking here. JRN will be onhand and will be uploading its own video coverage shortly afterward.

by Brett Larner

On Sept. 8 the organizers of the Super Track and Field Meet in Kawasaki 2009 released the entry lists for this year's meet to be held on Sept. 23. As in past years the meet has succeeded in signing a handful of marquee names to face off against the best domestic athletes. Topping the bill without a doubt are American sprinters Tyson Gay and Allyson Felix, along with hurdlers Felix Sanchez (Dominican Republic) and Perdita Felicien (Canada), shot putter Reese Hoffa (U.S.A.), and long jumper Tatiana Lebedeva (Russia).

The Japanese field includes most of this year's national champions and several World Championships and Olympic medalists and national record holders, among them Yukifumi Murakami (javelin), Masashi Eriguchi (100 m), Naoki Tsukahara (100 m), Chisato Fukushima (100 m), Momoko Takahashi (100 m), Yuzo Kanemaru (400 m), Kenji Narisako (400 mH), Daiichi Sawano (pole vault), Asami Tanno (400 m), Asuka Terada (100 mH), Satomi Kubokura (400 mH), Kumiko Imura (l…

by Brett Larner
event videos listed at bottom

The 36 year old anchor of Japan's Beijing Olympics bronze medal-winning men's 4 x 100 m relay team, Nobuharu Asahara (Team Osaka Gas), was the main attraction at the 2008 Seiko Super Track and Field Meet in Kawasaki, a near sellout crowd filling Kawasaki's Todoroki Stadium to witness Asahara's final run before his retirement. Despite the cancellation of several stars including men's 110 m hurdles world record holder Dayron Robles, Japanese fans were treated to a bonus in the unpublicized surprise guest appearance by Jamaican sprint star Usain Bolt, who came out to greet fans during the opening ceremonies.

Usain Bolt and the Japanese Olympic men's 4 x 100 m team.

In the field events, women's long jump national record holder Kumiko Ikeda (Team Suzuki) fouled on her first three jumps before finally getting on the scoreboard. She ultimately finished 2nd behind Russian Tatiana Lebedeva, a two-time Olympic medalist and de…

http://headlines.yahoo.co.jp/hl?a=20080922-00000031-jijp-spo.view-000

translated and edited by Brett Larner

Japan's Olympic bronze medal-winning 4 x 100 m team reunited at the Seiko Super Track and Field Meet in Kawasaki pre-meet press conference on Sept. 22. The four athletes, all of whom will compete in the meet, struck a group baton pass pose for photographers. From left to right are Nobuharu Asahara (Team Osaka Gas), Shinji Takahira (Team Fujitsu), Shingo Suetsugu (Team Mizuno) and Naoki Tsukahara (Team Fujitsu). The meet will be the 36 year-old Asahara's final race before his retirement.