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Onishi, the Shimizu Twins and Rios Looking for Biwako Marathon Win

http://www.jiji.com/jc/c?g=spo_30&k=2009022600881

translated by Brett Larner

The 42.195 km Biwako Mainichi Marathon takes place Mar. 1 in Otsu, Shiga Prefecture. As a selection race for August's World Championships in Berlin, the top Japanese finisher will automatically earn a spot on the team. With all five of the domestic invited elites close in ability the race will likely come down to who is best able to summon up a strong finish.

The Japanese runner with the best time is Yuzo Onishi (Team Nissin Shokuhin), who set his mark of 2:08:54 at last year's Biwako where he was 4th. In the same race Tomoya Shimizu (Team Sagawa Express) was 5th, running 2:09:23 in his marathon debut. Both runners are looking for a big leap in their performances this year. Shimizu's twin brother Masaya (Team Asahi Kasei) and veterans Kazutoshi Takatsuka (Team Komori Corp.) and Takashi Ota (Team Konica Minolta) make up the rest of the invited domestic field.

After the failure of Japanese men's [sic] marathoning at last summer's Beijing Olympics, this year's World Championships represent the beginning of a new and stronger era. Rikuren Long Distance and Road Racing Special Committee Assistant Director Toshio Kiuchi commented, "We expect to see the top Japanese runner break 2:09."

Among the foreign entrants, two-time Biwako winner Jose Rios (Spain) is the favorite for the win. 39 year old former world record holder Paul Tergat (Kenya) shows no sign that his strength has declined.
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