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JRN's Ten Most-Read Stories of 2019

The New Year and Hakone Ekidens were big news among JRN readers as always. But in Japanese long distance, this year was all about the 2020 Olympic marathon, and especially about the Sept. 15 MGC Race, Japan's first modern attempt at a one-shot Olympic trials format for choosing its Olympic marathon lineup. Five of this year's ten most-read stories were about the MGC Race, its qualifying races, and about the Olympic marathon itself. The complete top ten stories of the year in Japanese distance as seen by JRN readers:

Tokai University Wins First-Ever Hakone Ekiden Title - Jan. 2-3
After Toyo University held off four-time defending champion Aoyama Gakuin Unviersity to lead the Hakone Ekiden at the end of its first day, Tokai University came on strong on Day Two to overtake Toyo and keep AGU at bay for its first-ever win at Japan's most prestigious race.

Nakamura and Maeda Win Japanese 2020 Olympic Marathon Trials - Sept. 15
Abandoning its black box multi-race national team sel…
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Shitara to Go For National Record in Tokyo: "I Care About the 100 Million Yen Bonus More Than the Olympics"

In his first race since finishing 14th at the Sept. 15 MGC Race Olympic marathon trials, former marathon national record holder Yuta Shitara (Honda) ran the Nov. 3 East Japan Corporate Men's Ekiden, finishing 2nd on its Third Stage. "Even if you're tired, that's no excuse," he said. "I went to the starting line with confidence and ran the best I could according to how I'm feeling right now."

There's a lot of attention right now on the last remaining spot on the 2020 Olympic marathon team. The first two spots were secured by the 1st and 2nd-placers at the MGC Race, Shogo Nakamura (Fujitsu) and Yuma Hattori (Toyota). To claim the last remaining spot, someone has to break the Japanese national record and run at least 2:05:49 at this winter's Fukuoka International Marathon, Tokyo Marathon or Lake Biwa Mainichi Marathon. If nobody succeeds, the spot will go to MGC 3rd-placer and current national record holder Suguru Osako (ex-Nike Oregon Project…
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JAAF Announces Last-Chance Olympic Marathon Standards: 2:05:49 and 2:22:22

We hereby announce the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Marathon Team qualifying standards for the MGC Final Challenge.
men: 2:05:49
women: 2:22:22 These times are one second faster than the fastest times run by Japanese men and women within the MGC Race qualifying period. The fastest athlete under these standards at one of the MGC Final Challenge series races will earn the third and final spot on the Tokyo 2020 team following the two to be decided at September's MGC Race. MGC Final Challenge series races:
Men:73rd Fukuoka International MarathonTokyo Marathon 202075th Lake Biwa Mainichi Marathon Women:5th Saitama International Marathon39th Osaka International Women's MarathonNagoya Women's Marathon 2020 For more information on the overall Tokyo 2020 Olympic team qualification process please click here.
The official MGC site:  http://www.mgc42195.jp/
source press release:
https://www.jaaf.or.jp/news/article/12712/
translated and edited by Brett Larner

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Marathoner Arata Fujiwara Announces Retirement

2012 London Olympian Arata Fujiwara, 37, announced his retirement from competition on April 1. Effective the same day he will join the Suzuki Hamamatsu AC coaching staff.

Translator's note: The most wildly unpredictable of Japan's elite marathoners, Fujiwara's achievements included a 2:07:48 PB that at the time ranked him all-time Japanese #7, a 2:09:34 course record at the 2010 Ottawa Marathon that made him the first Japanese man in 23 years to win a marathon outside Japan sub-2:10, three 2nd-place finishes at the Tokyo Marathon, becoming only the fifth Japanese man to score five career sub-2:10s, and representing Japan at the 2009 Berlin World Championships and 2012 London Olympics. His 2010 decision to quit the corporate league system and get individual sponsorship led the way for others including future national record holder Suguru Osako and Hakone Ekiden star Daichi Kamino to do the same. 

source article:
https://headlines.yahoo.co.jp/hl?a=20190401-00000146-kyodonews-s…
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Yoshitomi Survives Four Marathons in Four Weeks to Win Saga Sakura Marathon

Arguably the highest-volume elite-level marathoner in the world, Hiroko Yoshitomi (Memolead) survived four straight weekends of marathons to win her hometown Saga Sakura Marathon yesterday.

Starting the month off at the Mar. 3 Tokyo Marathon Yoshitomi ran 2:32:30 for 13th. A week later at the Mar. 10 Nagoya Women's Marathon it was 2:34:49 for 31st. Last weekend she headed overseas in a bid to win the Mar. 17 New Taipei City Wan Jin Shi Marathon in Taiwan, but in a rare off day she finished 6th in only 2:48:45. Heading back home she rallied to win the Mar. 24 Saga Sakura Marathon in 2:42:02.

At an expo talk show appearance the Wan Jin Shi organizers billed Yoshitomi as "the female Kawauchi," but not even he has come close to the kind of volume of racing Yoshitomi has been turning out over the years while working at her parents' botanical farm. Expect to see more, and more, and more from her in the months to come.



photos courtesy of Wan Jin Shi Marathon organizers
text …
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Legese and Aga On Top, El Abbassi and Osako on the Sidelines at 2019 Tokyo Marathon

Headwinds in the last 6.5 km and cold rain throughout kept the really fast times from happening as scheduled, but the 2019 Tokyo Marathon still brought plenty of surprises.

#1-ranked Birhanu Legese (Ethiopia) winning the men's race wasn't one of them. The lead pack blasted most of the first half sub-2:04 pace, only breaking up after rounding the 20 km turnaround. Early casualties included last year's 4th-place Gideon Kipketer (Kenya) and Asian record holder El Hassan El Abbassi (Bahrain), but just after the turnaround national record holder Suguru Osako (Nike Oregon Project) and 2018 Berlin Marathon 4th-placer Shogo Nakamura (Fujitsu) dropped back, Osako stopping shortly thereafter.

The remaining six split into two trios. In the front group, defending champ Dickson Chumba (Kenya) fell back from Legese and Bedan Karoki (Kenya/DeNA) approaching 30 km before Legese took off after the final pacer said goodbye. On the way down to the 35.8 km turnaround Legese's pace approa…
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Storylines and Subplots at the 2019 Tokyo Marathon

The 2019 Tokyo Marathon is this Sunday. Storylines and subplots of this year’s race:
The Women The Tokyo Marathon has its roots as an elite men-only race. It’s taken twelve years since 18-year-old Hitomi Niiya became its first female winner, for no prize money or recognition (“I got a nice finisher’s medal” she told JRN last week), for the Tokyo women’s race to get up to parity with the men’s. It’s been a slow, step-by-step process, but this year at last parity has been achieved. If anything the women’s field is better than the men’s. Even before the withdrawal of the top two men there were more high-level international women in the field than men, and that’s even more so now.

Ethiopian power trio Ruti Aga, Boru Feyse Tadese and Yebrgual Melese all have the skills to better Sarah Chepchirchir’s 2:19:47 course record and its likely replacement, last year’s 2:19:51 win by Birhane Dibaba, Aga talking 2:18:30 at the pre-race press conference. But with six other women in the field with r…
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Kenenisa Bekele Withdraws from Tokyo Marathon with Stress Fracture

The Tokyo Marathon Foundation announced on Feb. 20 that 5000 m and 10000 m world record holder Kenenisa Bekele (Ethiopia) has withdrawn from the Mar. 3 Tokyo Marathon 2019 due to injury. The statement read, "He has a stress fracture that is going to take a little more time to heal. His motivation to recover and set his sights on a new goal is high, but unfortunately it seems that is still going to take a while."

#2-ranked Marius Kipserem (Kenya) has also withdrawn with injuries. On the domestic front, Kengo Suzuki (23, Fujitsu) has pulled out due to his condition. Yohei Suzuki (24, Aisan Kogyo) and Shinobu Kubota (27, Toyota) have also sustained injuries that will prevent them from starting. In the women's race, 2017 London World Championships team member Yuka Ando, 24, who earlier this month transferred from the Suzuki Hamamatsu AC team to the Wacoal corporate team, is also out with injury.

source article:
https://headlines.yahoo.co.jp/hl?a=20190220-00000112-sph-spo
trans…
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Tokyo Marathon Course Record Holder Sarah Chepchirchir Provisionally Suspended for Doping Offenses

A training partner of disgraced Rio Olympics gold medalist Jemima Sumgong, Tokyo Marathon course record holder and Japan all-comers' record holder Sarah Chepchirchir of Kenya has been provisionally suspended by the Athletics Integrity Unit for use of prohibited substances or methods. Chepchirchir's suspension follows the announcement last month of an eight-year suspension for Sumgong for doping-related offenses and an attempted coverup.

Both Chepchirchir and Sumgong are represented by agent Federico Rosa, whose other Kenyan clients include two-time Commonwealth Games medalist Lucy Kabuu, suspended last month for two years for doping, former Boston Marathon course record holder Rita Jeptoo, who lost her title and record with a four-year doping suspension, and former Olympic 1500 m gold medalist Asbel Kiprop, found to have tested positive for EPO. Rosa is scheduled to have athletes including 2018 Abu Dhabi Marathon winners Marius Kipserem (Kenya) and Ababel Yeshaneh (Ethiopia),…
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2019 Tokyo Marathon Elite Field

Hot on the heels of the London Marathon field announcement, the Tokyo Marathon has put its 2019 elite field into the public sphere. With a new date a week later on March 3rd thanks to the impending Imperial succession Tokyo has at last put together a proper elite women's field at parity with the men's field, one including top-level Japanese women for the first time. Change is slow to come, but with this field it looks like it has arrived. 2:18:34 for 2nd in Berlin last year,

Ethiopian Ruti Aga leads 14 women with times 2:23 or better in the last 3 years. Half are Ethiopian, two Kenyan, two Bahraini and three Japanese, with two high-level first-timers, Kenya's Joan Chelimo Melly and Japan's Mao Ichiyama, tacked on. #2 through #4-ranked women Boru Feyse Tadese, Yebrgual Melese and Ababel Yeshaneh all ran 2:19 to 2:20 last year, making the chances of an Ethiopian sweep definitely greater than zero.

The structure of Japanese national team selection and marketing-related f…
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Asian Games Gold Medalist Inoue to Run Boston Marathon

2018 Jakarta Asian Games men's marathon gold medalist Hiroto Inoue (26, MHPS) announced Jan. 10 that he this season he will tackle one of the world's highest-level races, April's Boston Marathon. "Not having pacers in a race adds its own kind of stress," he said. "I want to race it seriously as a step toward what's coming up."

The Boston Marathon is famous for its uphills late in the race. September's MGC Race 2020 Olympic marathon trials event also features an uphill at 37 km, and the opportunity to get the same kind of experience was enough to convince him to run. Originally Inoue had been looking at running March's Tokyo Marathon where he ran 2:06:54 last year, but, he said, "I want to run for time when the time comes to run for it. This year is about finding out how competitively I can race."

Inoue made his announcement just before departing for a training camp in New Zealand along with his MHPS teammate Ryo Kiname, 28. Target…
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JRN's Ten Most-Read Stories of 2018

JRN's ten most-read stories in the best year in Japanese men's marathoning history and one of the best for Japanese women.


1. How it Happened - Apr. 20
Inside the first Japanese men's Boston Marathon win in 31 years. JRN's all-time most-read story. Based on actual events. Preview.

2. Kazami Breaks 100 km World Record at Lake Saroma - June 24
Nao Kazami (Aisan Kogyo) broke the longstanding men's 100 km world record on the same course where it had been set previously. The top five all broke 6:30, with 3rd and 4th-placers Takehiro Gyoba and Hideaki Yamauchi going on to medal at the 100 km World Championships.

3. Kawauchi Breaks Sub-2:20 World Record in Sub-Zero Temperatures - Jan. 1
Running solo in below-freezing temperatures, Yuki Kawauchi (Saitama Pref. Gov't) became the first person to run under 2:20 in the marathon 76 times with a 2:18:59 course record win at the Marshfield Road Runners New Year's Day Marathon.

4. Guinness Certifies Kawauchi's World Record 78…
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Tokyo Marathon to Jack Up Entry Fee 50% in Name of Fight Against Terrorism

The Tokyo Marathon Foundation, independent organizer of the Tokyo Marathon, is considering a plan to increase the entry fees for the race by 50% for its 14th running in March, 2020. Its primary reason is a decrease in the event's profitability due to increased safety and security costs. The plan could be approved by the Board of Directors as early as December.

In the five years since the April, 2013 Boston Marathon bombing, the Tokyo Marathon's safety and security costs have increased by a factor of 2.7. This year's costs reached a record high of 482,000,000 yen [~$4,275,000 USD].

With the 2020 Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games looming in the near future the Foundation expects the threat of terrorism to grow. In preparation it plans to be beef up security measures at the Tokyo Marathon, with more security guards, metal detectors and surveillance cameras. Last year the Tokyo Metropolitan Government increased its subsidization of the Tokyo Marathon from 100,000,000 yen to …
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Breaking Down Marathon Season

The worldwide elite-level marathon season wrapped up for the first half of 2018 with last Sunday's Gold Coast Marathon in Australia and Hakodate Marathon in Japan. Yes, they were technically on July 1, but it was still June 30 in much of the world so we're going to count them anyway. Which countries led the way in performance and which races were the world's best in the first six months of the year? JRN breaks down the numbers to find the answers. Click any of the tables below to enlarge them. Corrections and additions are always welcome.

In terms of time, Ethiopia led the way this season with the fastest overall men's time and the fastest averages of its ten best men's and women's times. Vivian Cheruiyot's 2:18:31 win in London was the only Kenyan performance to make a dent in the Ethiopian domination of the time lists. For both men and women it's already Ethiopia's best year on record. Ethiopian women are knocking on a top ten average under 2:20 …
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Marathon National Record Holder Yuta Shitara Scores a Sweet Ride - "We're Going to Create a Legend Together"

At a ceremony in Sayama, Saitama on June 22, men's marathon national record holder Yuta Shitara, 26, was awarded a Legend luxury sedan by his corporate team sponsor Honda. Shitara was praised for cracking the national record with a 2:06:11 at February's Tokyo Marathon. "I didn't think I'd score a car out of it," he smiled. "I'm really happy to get it. I want to hit the road in it somewhere with my teammates."

The basic model of the car Shitara was awarded costs 7,000,000 yen [~$64,000 USD], but what he actually received came loaded with optional features. He was allowed to choose any model of Honda car he wanted, but it was the model's name, "Legend," that caught his attention. "I want to accomplish legendary things in the marathon," he commented. "The Legend and I are in to together for the long haul, and together we're going to create a legend."

【納車記念式典】#マラソン#日本記録 を樹立した #設楽悠太 選手に
所属会社 #Honda より「#LEGEND」が贈呈…
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Isahaya Holds Support Event for Asian Games Marathoner Hiroto Inoue

The town of Isahaya, Nagasaki held a support event June 9 for native son Hiroto Inoue (MHPS) ahead of August's Jakarta Asian Games where Inoue will run the marathon. In front of 140 people including his parents and coaches Inoue vowed to succeed, saying, "I'm where I am thanks to all of you who have supported me this far. I want to get back to basics and put everything I have into winning the gold medal."

Inoue graduated from Iimori J.H.S. and Chinzei Gakuin H.S. in Isahaya before attending Yamanashi Gakuin University. At February's Tokyo Marathon he ran 2:06:54 for 5th to earn his place on the Asian Games team.

The support event was organized by the Isahaya Track and Field Association and the trustees of Chinzei Gakuin H.S. Isahaya Track and Field Association chairperson Atsuhiro Ogawa told Inoue, "The high temperatures in Jakarta will have a serious impact on the body, making it a race of attrition.  I hope that you arrive there in peak condition and show…
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Hitomi Niiya to Make Comeback After Four Years Away From the Sport

On June 3 it was revealed that 2013 Moscow World Championships women's 10000 m 5th-placer Hitomi Niiya, 30, will run the women's 3000 m at the June 9 Nittai University Time Trials as part of the Nike Tokyo Track Club. Her first race in over four years, the race represents her first step on the road to a comeback in time for the 2020 Tokyo Oympic Games. According to a club spokesperson, Niiya began running again last summer. Her goal at Nittai to clear the 9:50 qualifying time for July's Hokuren Distance Challenge series in Hokkaido, where she will run the 5000 m in order to secure the 15:40.00 standard for the 2019 National Championships.

A native of Soja, Okayama, while at Kojokan H.S. Niiya won the 6.0 km First Stage at the National High School Ekiden three years in a row. Two of those runs broke the course record, with her time of 18:52 still standing as the course record. No other runner has ever broken 19 minutes. Together with her future London Olympics teammate Ris…
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How Much Tax Will Shitara Have to Pay on His 100 Million Yen NR Bonus? What About Pyeongchang Gold Medalist Takagi?

Huge bonuses are just flying around this week.

On Feb. 28 the Nidec corporation, parent company of Pyeongchang Winter Olympics women's speed skating double gold medalist Nana Takagi's sponsor Nidec Sankyo, announced that it would award her a bonus of 40 million yen (~$378,000 USD) for her gold medals. The JOC and Japan Skating Federation will each award Takagi and additional 10 million yen, bringing her total to 60 million yen (~$568,000 USD).

At almost the same time, on Feb. 26 Tokyo Marathon Yuta Shitara (Honda) received a 100 million yen bonus (~$946,000 USD) from the National Corporate Athletics Federation for setting a new Japanese national record of 2:06:11 at the Feb. 25 Tokyo Marathon.

The million-dollar question is how much tax will they have to pay? Bonuses from the JOC and member organizations, 5 million yen for gold, 2 million for silver, and 1 million for bronze, are tax-exempt. Bonuses from other organizations and sponsors are subject to taxation.

In Takagi'…
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Takaoka on Shitara: "He Can Compete With the Best in the World"

At Sunday's Tokyo Marathon, half marathon Japanese national record holder Yuta Shitara (26, Honda) ran 2:06:11 to set a new Japanese national record. Taking almost 3 minutes off his PB, Shitara bettered the old record set by Toshinari Takaoka in 2002 by 5 seconds. Shitara finished 2nd overall, 41 seconds behind winner Dickson Chumba (Kenya).

With his record having stood for almost 16 years, Takaoka gave his blessings, saying, "My record being beaten has made the path forward to the 2020 Tokyo Olympics brighter. When I saw Shitara's race in Tokyo last year I knew the day my record would fall was close at hand."

Comparing the 2002 race where he set the old record of 2:06:16 and this year's Tokyo Marathon, Takaoka said, "Running a Japanese national record requires the right combination of weather, competition, pacing, and physical condition. It was a great thing for Shitara that Hiroto Inoue was there running ahead of him as well. The most important thing that…
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