by Brett Larner
The first Sunday in February is one of the busiest days in the elite Japanese racing world. Three major events take place across the country, the Beppu-Oita Mainichi Marathon, the Ome Marathon 30 km road race, and the Kagawa Marugame Half Marathon.
The Beppu-Oita Mainichi Marathon has historically been one Japan's top marathons, having seen four sub-2:09 performances and one world record, and sometimes serving as a selection race for Olympics and World Championships teams. This year Betsudai, as the race is commonly known, was not chosen as an Olympic selection race; as a result the field is somewhat softer than usual. The top domestic marathoner in the field is Team Kanebo's Michitane Noda with a PB of 2:09:58 from the 2003 Fukuoka International Marathon; Team Fujitsu's Takayuki Ota has been running well of late and looks set to make a mark in his debut marathon. Overseas contenders include four-time Chunchon Marathon winner Elijah Mutai of Kenya, Ruggero Pertile of Italy, and Scott Wescott of Australia. A complete list of entrants is available here.
The Ome Marathon is one of the most honored races in Japan. The race is a hilly, out-and-back 30 km course following the Tama River gorge in the mountains west of Tokyo. Marathon greats such as Bill Rogers, Greg Meyer, Naoko Takahashi and Mizuki Noguchi have been past winners. Japan's legendary Toshihiko Seko set the men's course record of 1:29:32 in the 1981 edition of the race. Last year's Ome included a number of runners from the American team Hansons, including Brian Sell who finished 4th in the Boston Marathon and went on to qualify for the Beijing Olympics. This year's outstanding entrant is Team Kanebo's Toshinari Takaoka. The aging Takaoka has been injured and in recovery for much of the past two years and hopes to make Ome the beginning of his comeback. The women's race is likely to be dominated by Team Panasonic's Akane Taira. Taira is planning to try to qualify for the Beijing Olympics at the Nagoya International Women's Marathon in March and will be using Ome as a tuneup. The women's race also includes four members of Josai Kokusai University's women's team who are making their 30 km debuts and may present Taira with a surprise. Ome also includes a 10 km event. Last week's Osaka International Women's Marathon winner and defending Ome 10 km champion Mara Yamauchi will be running, but only at a participatory level.
The Kagawa Marugame Half Marathon is the oldest of the three races and one of the fastest courses in Japan. Kayoko Fukushi set the women's national record of 1:07:26 at the 2006 Marugame, and Mekubo Mogusu, a Kenyan 'exchange student' at Yamanashi Gakuin University, ran 59:48 at last year's race, the first and fastest of his three sub-1 hour halves in 2007. The race features a stacked field of both university and jitsugyodan runners. The men's race this year most prominently includes national 5000 m and world 30 km record holder Takayuki Matsumiya of Team Konica Minolta. Matsumiya comes to Marugame having run 1:02:28 for 22 km on the slightly downhill New Year Ekiden 2nd stage. Given that this performance was equivalent to 59:54 for a half marathon, it looks possible for Matsumiya to take on Atsushi Sato's national record of 1:00:25. The top woman in the field is Team Sega Sammy's Mikie Takanaka, the winner of the 2007 Nagoya Half Marathon with a PB of 1:08:26. Other big name women include Harumi Hiroyama (Team Shiseido), Mari Ozaki (Team Noritz), Akemi Osaki (Team Daiichi Seimei), Kaori Yoshida (Second Wind AC) and Mika Hikichi (Team Tenmaya), many of whom are preparing for the Nagoya International Women's Marathon in March. A complete list of elite entrants is available here.
(c) 2008 Brett Larner
all rights reserved
The first Sunday in February is one of the busiest days in the elite Japanese racing world. Three major events take place across the country, the Beppu-Oita Mainichi Marathon, the Ome Marathon 30 km road race, and the Kagawa Marugame Half Marathon.
The Beppu-Oita Mainichi Marathon has historically been one Japan's top marathons, having seen four sub-2:09 performances and one world record, and sometimes serving as a selection race for Olympics and World Championships teams. This year Betsudai, as the race is commonly known, was not chosen as an Olympic selection race; as a result the field is somewhat softer than usual. The top domestic marathoner in the field is Team Kanebo's Michitane Noda with a PB of 2:09:58 from the 2003 Fukuoka International Marathon; Team Fujitsu's Takayuki Ota has been running well of late and looks set to make a mark in his debut marathon. Overseas contenders include four-time Chunchon Marathon winner Elijah Mutai of Kenya, Ruggero Pertile of Italy, and Scott Wescott of Australia. A complete list of entrants is available here.
The Ome Marathon is one of the most honored races in Japan. The race is a hilly, out-and-back 30 km course following the Tama River gorge in the mountains west of Tokyo. Marathon greats such as Bill Rogers, Greg Meyer, Naoko Takahashi and Mizuki Noguchi have been past winners. Japan's legendary Toshihiko Seko set the men's course record of 1:29:32 in the 1981 edition of the race. Last year's Ome included a number of runners from the American team Hansons, including Brian Sell who finished 4th in the Boston Marathon and went on to qualify for the Beijing Olympics. This year's outstanding entrant is Team Kanebo's Toshinari Takaoka. The aging Takaoka has been injured and in recovery for much of the past two years and hopes to make Ome the beginning of his comeback. The women's race is likely to be dominated by Team Panasonic's Akane Taira. Taira is planning to try to qualify for the Beijing Olympics at the Nagoya International Women's Marathon in March and will be using Ome as a tuneup. The women's race also includes four members of Josai Kokusai University's women's team who are making their 30 km debuts and may present Taira with a surprise. Ome also includes a 10 km event. Last week's Osaka International Women's Marathon winner and defending Ome 10 km champion Mara Yamauchi will be running, but only at a participatory level.
The Kagawa Marugame Half Marathon is the oldest of the three races and one of the fastest courses in Japan. Kayoko Fukushi set the women's national record of 1:07:26 at the 2006 Marugame, and Mekubo Mogusu, a Kenyan 'exchange student' at Yamanashi Gakuin University, ran 59:48 at last year's race, the first and fastest of his three sub-1 hour halves in 2007. The race features a stacked field of both university and jitsugyodan runners. The men's race this year most prominently includes national 5000 m and world 30 km record holder Takayuki Matsumiya of Team Konica Minolta. Matsumiya comes to Marugame having run 1:02:28 for 22 km on the slightly downhill New Year Ekiden 2nd stage. Given that this performance was equivalent to 59:54 for a half marathon, it looks possible for Matsumiya to take on Atsushi Sato's national record of 1:00:25. The top woman in the field is Team Sega Sammy's Mikie Takanaka, the winner of the 2007 Nagoya Half Marathon with a PB of 1:08:26. Other big name women include Harumi Hiroyama (Team Shiseido), Mari Ozaki (Team Noritz), Akemi Osaki (Team Daiichi Seimei), Kaori Yoshida (Second Wind AC) and Mika Hikichi (Team Tenmaya), many of whom are preparing for the Nagoya International Women's Marathon in March. A complete list of elite entrants is available here.
(c) 2008 Brett Larner
all rights reserved
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