japan running news

by Brett Larner videos by Ekiden News The weekend's main domestic action came at the National University Individual Track and Field Championships , a smaller counterpart to September's National University Track and Field Championships held each year at Kanagawa's Shonan BMW Stadium.  In distance highlights, 2015 Kanto Regionals women's 10000 m runner-up Fuyuka Kimura (Daito Bunka Univ.) narrowly outkicked local rival Kotoe Chaya (Nittai Univ.) for the win in 15:56.89, Chaya just back in 15:57.01 for 2nd.  Wakana Itsuki (Fukuoka Univ.) made it a truly national race with a 15:58.30 for 3rd.  Hikaru Nakamura (Kyoto Koka Joshi Univ.) led a central/western Japan sweep of the women's 1500 m, winning in 4:26.32.  Anju Takamizawa (Matsuyama Univ.) scored a meet record 10:08.40 to win the women's 3000 mSC by a wide margin. The men's 5000 m was almost a time trial for 2015 Hakone Ekiden champion Aoyama Gakuin University , AGU runners taking 7 of the top ...

http://www.insidethegames.biz/articles/1027929/tokyo-2020-receive-applications-from-26-new-sports-for-olympic-inclusion The paragraph regarding events within sports already on the program would seem to hold out hope for the possibility of an ekiden being proposed for inclusion on the Tokyo 2020 program.  Let's hope so.  The now-defunct International Chiba Ekiden course is all set for it, but there is a more visionary option: Do it on the Hakone Ekiden Day One course. Five stages, each roughly a half marathon, with ~900 m of climb on the final stage finishing in full view of Mt. Fuji. Incorporating the home country's greatest sporting event into its Olympics in a format everyone would love.  Think how spectacular that would be.  It has to happen.

http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/local/shizuoka/news/20150610-OYTNT50188.html translated by Brett Larner Skirting the feet of Mt. Fuji, the Mt. Fuji Women's Ekiden national university women's invitational ekiden championship race is set to go off again this year.  Co-organized by the Fuji city government, the race's third edition will be held at the end of the year on Dec. 30.  For the first time, its field will include a select team made up of top Shizuoka talent. The course is the same as in the first two runnings, starting at Fuji Hongu Sengen Shrine in the city of Fujinomiya and covering 43.4 km in 7 stages on the way to the finish at Fuji Sports Park Field in Fuji.  20 schools will race including top finisher teams from October's Morinomiyako Ekiden national university women's championships.  New this year, the Shizuoka Prefecture Student Select Team will feature university and graduate student athletes who graduated from junior high schools and high schools in ...

http://www.insidethegames.biz/articles/1027838/tokyo-2020-leaders-unveil-new-round-of-venue-changes-but-bach-wants-national-stadium-issues-resolved

by Brett Larner Almost 2500 people started the fourth edition of Hida Takayama Ultramarathon on Sunday, both its 71 km and 100 km divisions featuring a tough series of hills peaking out at 1345 m, around 800 m above the start point, on scenic road courses through the mountains of Gifu prefecture.  Good weather meant new men's and women's records in both distances. A second-year ekiden team member at Ryutsu Keizai University , alma mater of marathon great Daniel Njenga and sub-27 track runner Josphat Ndambiri , 20 year-old Hiroumi Kamada made the news of the day in the 100 km, taking almost 18 minutes off the event record to win in 7:41:25 in his ultramarathon debut.  Kamada was so dominant that runner-up Wataru Iino , also under the course record, was nearly 15 minutes back in 7:55:49, with previous course record holder Kaname Miyagi a distant 3rd in 8:05:41.  Painfully shy during the award ceremony, in response to the MC's questions Kamada said, "It wasn...

http://headlines.yahoo.co.jp/hl?a=20150607-00000015-dal-spo translated and edited by Brett Larner videos by Ryosuke Furuya On June 6 the athletics world's #1 amateur runner, Yuki Kawauchi (28, Saitama Pref. Gov't), won the 5000 m title at the 70th Saitama Prefecture Track and Field Championships at Kumagaya Sports Park Field, running 14:52.62 before doubling back to finish 8th in 4:03.05 in the 1500 m, an event he won last year.  In interviews after the race he weighed in on the JAAF's statement late last month that it was eliminating the preference given to members of its year-old National Team marathon development program in the selection process for the Rio de Janeiro Olympic team. There has been no communication about the significant change in policy from the Federation to the athletes currently in the National Team program.  "I read about it in the news," said Kawauchi, who excelled last year as a National Team member, winning the bronze medal in l...

http://athleticsasia.org/index.php/k2-component/75-china-remains-on-top-in-asia-21st-asian-athletics-championship-concludes-in-wuhan 21st Asian Athletics Championships - Summary of Japanese Medalists Wuhan, China, June 3-7, 2015 click here for complete results Men Men's 800 m 1. Abdelrahman Bala Musaab (Qatar) - 1:49.40 2. Jinson Johnson (India) - 1:49.69 3. Sho Kawamoto (Japan) - 1:50.50 Men's 400 m 1. Haroun Abdalleleh (Qatar) - 44.68 2. Ahmed Masrahi Yousef (Saudi Arabia) - 45.14 3. Kentaro Sato (Japan) - 46.09 Men's 400 mH 1. Yuta Konishi (Japan) - 49.58 2. Chieh Chen (Taiwan) - 49.68 3. Kazuaki Yoshida (Japan) - 49.95 Men's 4x400 m Relay 1. Qatar - 3:02.50 - MR 2. Saudi Arabia - 3:02.62 3. Japan - 3:03.47 Men's High Jump 1. Takashi Eto (Japan) - 2.24 m 2. Chunhsien Hsiang (Taiwan) - 2.24 m 3. Aissa Barsham Mutaz (Qatar) - 2.20 m Men's Pole Vault 1. Wei Zhang (China) - 5.60 m 2. Seito Yamamoto (Japan) - 5.50 m 3. Bokai Hua...

http://www.iaaf.org/competitions/iaaf-label-road-races/news/cheroben-chelimo-ceske-budejovice-half-marath Team Yachiyo Kogyo sub-63 men Shota Kai and Kenta Kitazawa also ran, Kai finishing 8th in 1:07:20 and Kitazawa 9th in 1:10:16, narrowly beating women's winner Rose Chelimo (Kenya).  Click here for complete results .