by Brett Larner What are the world`s great races? Great in the sense of history, atmosphere and something intangible which can`t be bought by PR-savvy race directors with bottomless checkbooks. Races like Comrades and Boston come to mind first. Comparatively unknown outside Japan but standing alongside these races is the Hakone Ekiden . The Hakone Ekiden is the East Japan university men`s championship, a 10-stage, 217.9 km relay race from central Tokyo to the mountain resort town of Hakone and back, held every year on Jan. 2 and 3. The ekiden began in 1920 and has continued uninterrupted apart from a hiatus during World War II. In post-war years Hakone was quickly reinitiated despite the shortage of young men to run; during those years university athletes from other sports were enlisted to run in order to help the tradition continue. The Hakone Ekiden has grown over the decades into a central position within the Japanese distance running world. In the last 20 years it has expanded beyo...
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