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An Update on Eastern European Women in Japan

by Brett Larner

Yesterday it was announced that Russian Albina Mayorova has received a four-year suspension after testing positive for elevated testosterone. Mayorova was a four-time winner of Japan's major women's marathons and a regular at the Tokyo Marathon. Her suspension follows that of a number of other Eastern European women to have won Japanese marathons in the last ten years, including Inga Abitova, Tatiana Aryasova, Mariya Konovalova, and Tetiana Gamera-Shmyrko, all five represented by Russian agent Andrey Baranov and his Spartanik agency. What impact have these and other women from former Soviet nations had on the domestic Japanese women's marathon circuit?

Below is a list of every time one has finished in the top three in one of Japan's five main women's marathons in the last 20 years plus other results by those who later tested positive. During this period, women from former Soviet nations have won Japanese marathons 21 times. Of those, thirteen were …

2009 Yokohama International Women's Marathon Winner Abitova Given Two-Year Doping Suspension

http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/olympics/sns-rt-us-athletics-russia-abitovabre8a61ls-20121107,0,2970680.story

Inga Abitova is the second Japanese marathon-winning Russian woman managed by Spartanik RS Inc. this year to have been given a doping suspension, following Tatiana Aryasova who was stripped of her 2011 Tokyo Marathon win after a positive test for a masking agent.  According to the article linked above Abitova will be stripped of all results beginning Oct. 10, 2009, a period which includes her 2009 Yokohama International Women's Marathon win.  If Abitova loses her Yokohama title, runner-up Kiyoko Shimahara (Second Wind AC) should find herself elevated to the winner's position.  

Other athletes on Spartanik's current roster to have won Japanese marathons in the last five years include 2012 Nagoya International Marathon winner Albina Mayorova, 2010 Tokyo Marathon winner Alevtina Biktimirova and 2008 Nagano Marathon winner Alevtina Ivanona.  Spartanik's Kateryna…

Russian Tatyana Aryasova Stripped of 2011 Tokyo Marathon Title After Testing Positive for Masking Agent

http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/sports/news/20120124-OYT1T00932.htm?from=main6
http://www.sanspo.com/sports/news/120124/spg1201241730001-n1.htm

translated and edited by Brett Larner

The Tokyo Marathon Foundation announced on Feb. 24 that a doping test performed at the Feb. 27, 2011 Tokyo Marathon on women's winner Tatyana Aryasova of Russia returned positive for HES (hydroxyethyl starch), a banned substance typically used to conceal use of other banned performance-enhancing substances.  As a result of the positive test Aryasova has been stripped of her 2011 title.  Runner-up Noriko Higuchi (Team Wacoal) has been elevated to the winner's place and will be paid the difference in prize money from her previous finishing position.

According to the Japan Anti-Doping Agency, HES is used to conceal blood doping carried out to improve aerobic performance.  This is the first time the substance has been detected at a race within Japan, but the number of athletes caught using it in overseas cyclin…

'Summary of Post-Race Press Conference at Tokyo Marathon'

Excellent quotes from 2011 Tokyo Marathon winners Hailu Mekonnen and Tatiana Aryasova along with top Japanese finishers Yuki Kawauchi and Noriko Higuchi, thanks to Ken Nakamura:

http://www.all-athletics.com/en-us/2011-02-28/summary-post-race-press-conference-tokyo-marathon

This translated article also has some good quotes from Kawauchi and one priceless piece of info about his World Championships plans:

http://mdn.mainichi.jp/mdnnews/sports/news/20110228p2a00m0na016000c.html

Mekonnen Wins Tokyo Marathon, Amateur Kawauchi 3rd in 2:08:37 (updated)

by Brett Larner

Update: Reader vilagoiberia just sent me a link to this video of the last 6.5 km of Kawauchi's run.



Dreams come true - Yuki Kawauchi

Losing its biggest stories one by one with the withdrawal of world record holder Haile Gebrselassie (Ethiopia), defending champion Masakazu Fujiwara (Team Honda), debuting Kenyan star Gideon Ngatuny (Team Nissin Shokuhin) and debuting former university Hakone Ekiden star Hideaki Date (Team Chugoku Denryoku), in its fifth edition the Tokyo Marathon got something else entirely.

With the day dawning with ideal conditions, 7 degrees, light partial cloud cover and gentle winds, everyone knew the race would be fast. 19 year old pacer Bitan Karoki (Kenya/Team S&B), who ran a course record 27:52 a day earlier in the senior men's 10k at the Fukuoka International XC Meet, took the race out slightly ahead of schedule, splitting 14:56 for the downhill first 5 km and 14:59 for the next. 15 km went by in 44:49, 20 km in 59:53 and halfway in 1…

Shibui Returns - Tokyo Marathon Women's Preview

by Brett Larner

It's Tokyo Marathon week. This is the first of JRN's two-part preview of this year's fifth edition, to be held this Sunday, Feb. 27. Click here for part two, our men's preview. Look for additional articles and info as the week goes along. This year's race will be broadcast live on Fuji TV beginning at 9 a.m. Japan time. Overseas viewers should be able to watch online via Keyhole TV. Some viewers experienced trouble with Keyhole for last week's Yokohama International Women's Marathon but it appears to be working fine as of this writing, so make sure you have downloaded the current version of the player to increase your chances. In any case, JRN will be doing live race commentary via Twitter. Click here to follow.

The Tokyo Marathon's elite women's race occupies a peculiar position in its third edition, with world-class prize money at stake and quality overseas competition but excluded from the selection races for this year's World C…

Haile Leads 2011 Tokyo Marathon - Complete Elite Field Listing

by Brett Larner

The Tokyo Marathon has announced the elite field for this year's fifth running, to be held Feb. 27. Following through on his pre-retirement crisis promise, world record holder Haile Gebrselassie (Ethiopia) will return to the marathon distance after his DNF at November's New York City Marathon.

Gebrselassie faces what is without a doubt the strongest field in Tokyo's short history, including 2010 and 2009 winners Masakazu Fujiwara (Team Honda) and Salim Kipsang (Kenya), 2010 Biwako Mainichi Marathon winner Yemane Tsegaye (Ethiopia), 2010 Hokkaido Marathon winner Cyrus Njui (Kenya/Team Hitachi Cable), 2008 Kenyan XC champion Gideon Ngatuny (Team Nissin Shokuhin) in his marathon debut, recent 2:07 man Paul Biwott (Kenya), 2:07 runner and former teammate of Fujiwara's Hailu Mekonnen (Ethiopia), veteran great Felix Limo (Kenya), top-ranked Japanese debutant Yoshinori Oda (Team Toyota), and, thus far unsuccessful at the marathon in his first two attempts, sub-h…