by Brett Larner
Japan's athletics federation Rikuren announced the official lineups for its 2009 World Championships marathon teams at a press conference on May 7. The federation, its athletes and the country are determined to make up for the national team's ruinous showing at last summer's Olympic games. Both the men's and women's include a fair number of young up-and-comers, with two of the men and all but one of the women having debuted within the last two years and three runners total having qualified for the World Championship team in their debut marathons.
Click here for a preview of the men's World Championships team.
Berlin World Championships Marathon Team Members - Women
click photos for detailed profiles
Yoshimi Ozaki (Team Daiichi Seimei) comes to the World Championships with the fastest qualifying time on the Japanese women's team despite having debuted only last year. Ozaki narrowly missed out on the Beijing Olympics team when she finished 2nd at last year's Nagoya but came back with a ferocious run over the uphill final stretch of the Tokyo International Women's Marathon to take out Yoko Shibui, Mara Yamauchi and Yuri Kano, the latter two of whom ran nearly flawless PB races, on her way to an almost 3-minute improvement over her Nagoya debut. Injuries kept Ozaki out of April's Berlin Half Marathon and at around the same time she cancelled plans to participate in a group training camp with other members of the Berlin team, so there may be questions about her condition.
Yoshimi Ozaki (Team Daiichi Seimei)
Qualification Mark:
2:23:30 - PB (1st, Tokyo Int'l 2008)
Other Major Results:
2:26:19 (2nd, Nagoya 2008)
Former marathon national record holder Yoko Shibui (Team Mitsui Sumitomo Kaijo) is the only woman on the national team with considerable marathon experience. After early-career success and a long, long dry spell Shibui has had an only slightly spotted renaissance over the last year, her win in January's Osaka International Women's Marathon standing as the 3rd-best time in the world so far this year and especially notable for her blazing finish after 40 km which was fast enough to have outrun every man in December's Fukuoka International Marathon except winner Tsegaye Kebede of Ethiopia. The reborn Shibui looks like Japan's best hope for a medal, but injuries caused her to cancel her last two races this spring and have played upon national nerves still jangled by the memory of Beijing.
Yoko Shibui (Team Mitsui Sumitomo Kaijo)
Qualification Mark:
2:23:42 (1st, Osaka 2009)
Other Major Results:
2:19:41 - PB (1st, Berlin 2004, former NR)
2:21:22 (3rd, Chicago 2002)
2:23:11 (1st, Osaka 2001, former debut WR)
2:23:58 (2nd, Nagoya 2006)
2:26:33 (4th, World Championships 2001)
10000 m, Beijing Olympics 2008
Yuri Kano (Second Wind AC) had an outstanding debut at the 2007 Osaka International Women's Marathon, running 2:24:43 but missing out on that year's World Championships team. She followed up with a win in the heat in Hokkaido later that summer but was troubled with injury in the first half of 2008. A series of excellent half marathons led up to her PB run at last November's Tokyo International Women's Marathon, but she has had injury issues again in the time since then. After making a habit of coming in 2nd behind Mara Yamauchi (U.K.) in her last few half marathons, Kano was nowhere to be found in her international debut at last month's London Marathon as she finished a mediocre five minutes and nine places behind Yamauchi. In a perfect race Kano may go as far as 2:23, but so far in her short marathon career she hasn't shown signs of being able to keep up when things really get underway.
Yuri Kano (Second Wind AC)
Qualification Mark:
2:24:27 - PB (2nd, Tokyo Int'l 2008)
Other Major Results:
2:24:43 (3rd, Osaka 2007)
2:26:39 (3rd, Nagoya 2008)
2:30:43 (1st, Hokkaido 2007)
Although the title rightfully belongs to 2:29:30 runner Chihiro Tanaka (Team Daitsu), Yukiko Akaba (Team Hokuren) has received great attention in the media over the last year and a half as Japan's first 'mama-san runner.' Her running, however, speaks for itself. In 2008 she entered the all-time Japanese top three or four over 5000 m, 10000 m and half marathon, making the Beijing Olympics in both of the track distances. The winter ekiden season interfered with her training for her debut marathon at January's Osaka International Women's Marathon, but Akaba still pulled off a strong 2:25:40 for 2nd place. She had to wait until after the London Marathon to see if she made the World Championships team but announced that if she was not picked she would instead shoot for 2:22 at September's Berlin Marathon. Now on the team she will be deadly focused and it would not be surprising to see her as the top Japanese finisher. Her run at the May 10 Sendai International Half Marathon, her first major race since Osaka, will give a good indication of her fitness.
Yukiko Akaba (Team Hokuren)
Qualification Mark:
2:25:40 - debut (2nd, Osaka 2009)
Other Major Results:
1:08:11 - CR (1st, National Corporate Half Marathon 2008)
1:11:39 (10th, World Half Marathon 2008)
5000 m and 10000 m, Beijing Olympics 2008
Like Akaba, Yoshiko Fujinaga (Team Shiseido), a former teammate of Kano, qualified for the World Championships in her marathon debut. Fujinaga was somewhat lucky in facing a relatively weak field in Nagoya this year, but her slow time hides the quality of the race tactics she used to win. A World Championships track runner ten years ago while in high school, Fujinaga freely admits she is the bottom member of the marathon team and is working on improving her speed. She has had only moderate results in her track races since Nagoya and would need a significant leap in quality to achieve anything noteworthy in Berlin.
Yoshiko Fujinaga (Team Shiseido)
Qualification Mark:
2:28:13 - debut (1st, Nagoya 2009)
Other Major Results:
5000 m National Champion, 2000
5000 m, World Championships 1999
Alternate
You have to feel a little sorry for Tomo Morimoto (Team Tenmaya), the most experienced marathoner on the World Championships team after Shibui. The only reliably good marathoner on Team Tenmaya, a club somewhat infamous for one or two hit wonders, Morimoto was the alternate on last year's Beijing Olympics team despite running a faster time than Tenmaya teammate Yurika Nakamura who was chosen to run in the Olympics. In last month's London Marathon Morimoto had to break Akaba's mark of 2:25:40 to make the Berlin team, but she fell short with a 2:26:29 meaning that although she was nearly two minutes faster than Fujinaga's Nagoya-winning time she is again left sitting on the bench as alternate.
Tomo Morimoto (Team Tenmaya)
Qualification Mark:
2:26:29 (8th, London 2009)
Other Major Results:
2:24:33 - PB (1st, Vienna 2006)
2:25:34 (2nd, Osaka 2008)
alternate, 2008 Beijing Olympics marathon team
(c) 2009 Brett Larner
all rights reserved
Japan's athletics federation Rikuren announced the official lineups for its 2009 World Championships marathon teams at a press conference on May 7. The federation, its athletes and the country are determined to make up for the national team's ruinous showing at last summer's Olympic games. Both the men's and women's include a fair number of young up-and-comers, with two of the men and all but one of the women having debuted within the last two years and three runners total having qualified for the World Championship team in their debut marathons.
Click here for a preview of the men's World Championships team.
Berlin World Championships Marathon Team Members - Women
click photos for detailed profiles
Yoshimi Ozaki (Team Daiichi Seimei) comes to the World Championships with the fastest qualifying time on the Japanese women's team despite having debuted only last year. Ozaki narrowly missed out on the Beijing Olympics team when she finished 2nd at last year's Nagoya but came back with a ferocious run over the uphill final stretch of the Tokyo International Women's Marathon to take out Yoko Shibui, Mara Yamauchi and Yuri Kano, the latter two of whom ran nearly flawless PB races, on her way to an almost 3-minute improvement over her Nagoya debut. Injuries kept Ozaki out of April's Berlin Half Marathon and at around the same time she cancelled plans to participate in a group training camp with other members of the Berlin team, so there may be questions about her condition.Yoshimi Ozaki (Team Daiichi Seimei)
Qualification Mark:
2:23:30 - PB (1st, Tokyo Int'l 2008)
Other Major Results:
2:26:19 (2nd, Nagoya 2008)
Former marathon national record holder Yoko Shibui (Team Mitsui Sumitomo Kaijo) is the only woman on the national team with considerable marathon experience. After early-career success and a long, long dry spell Shibui has had an only slightly spotted renaissance over the last year, her win in January's Osaka International Women's Marathon standing as the 3rd-best time in the world so far this year and especially notable for her blazing finish after 40 km which was fast enough to have outrun every man in December's Fukuoka International Marathon except winner Tsegaye Kebede of Ethiopia. The reborn Shibui looks like Japan's best hope for a medal, but injuries caused her to cancel her last two races this spring and have played upon national nerves still jangled by the memory of Beijing.Yoko Shibui (Team Mitsui Sumitomo Kaijo)
Qualification Mark:
2:23:42 (1st, Osaka 2009)
Other Major Results:
2:19:41 - PB (1st, Berlin 2004, former NR)
2:21:22 (3rd, Chicago 2002)
2:23:11 (1st, Osaka 2001, former debut WR)
2:23:58 (2nd, Nagoya 2006)
2:26:33 (4th, World Championships 2001)
10000 m, Beijing Olympics 2008
Yuri Kano (Second Wind AC) had an outstanding debut at the 2007 Osaka International Women's Marathon, running 2:24:43 but missing out on that year's World Championships team. She followed up with a win in the heat in Hokkaido later that summer but was troubled with injury in the first half of 2008. A series of excellent half marathons led up to her PB run at last November's Tokyo International Women's Marathon, but she has had injury issues again in the time since then. After making a habit of coming in 2nd behind Mara Yamauchi (U.K.) in her last few half marathons, Kano was nowhere to be found in her international debut at last month's London Marathon as she finished a mediocre five minutes and nine places behind Yamauchi. In a perfect race Kano may go as far as 2:23, but so far in her short marathon career she hasn't shown signs of being able to keep up when things really get underway.Yuri Kano (Second Wind AC)
Qualification Mark:
2:24:27 - PB (2nd, Tokyo Int'l 2008)
Other Major Results:
2:24:43 (3rd, Osaka 2007)
2:26:39 (3rd, Nagoya 2008)
2:30:43 (1st, Hokkaido 2007)
Although the title rightfully belongs to 2:29:30 runner Chihiro Tanaka (Team Daitsu), Yukiko Akaba (Team Hokuren) has received great attention in the media over the last year and a half as Japan's first 'mama-san runner.' Her running, however, speaks for itself. In 2008 she entered the all-time Japanese top three or four over 5000 m, 10000 m and half marathon, making the Beijing Olympics in both of the track distances. The winter ekiden season interfered with her training for her debut marathon at January's Osaka International Women's Marathon, but Akaba still pulled off a strong 2:25:40 for 2nd place. She had to wait until after the London Marathon to see if she made the World Championships team but announced that if she was not picked she would instead shoot for 2:22 at September's Berlin Marathon. Now on the team she will be deadly focused and it would not be surprising to see her as the top Japanese finisher. Her run at the May 10 Sendai International Half Marathon, her first major race since Osaka, will give a good indication of her fitness.Yukiko Akaba (Team Hokuren)
Qualification Mark:
2:25:40 - debut (2nd, Osaka 2009)
Other Major Results:
1:08:11 - CR (1st, National Corporate Half Marathon 2008)
1:11:39 (10th, World Half Marathon 2008)
5000 m and 10000 m, Beijing Olympics 2008
Like Akaba, Yoshiko Fujinaga (Team Shiseido), a former teammate of Kano, qualified for the World Championships in her marathon debut. Fujinaga was somewhat lucky in facing a relatively weak field in Nagoya this year, but her slow time hides the quality of the race tactics she used to win. A World Championships track runner ten years ago while in high school, Fujinaga freely admits she is the bottom member of the marathon team and is working on improving her speed. She has had only moderate results in her track races since Nagoya and would need a significant leap in quality to achieve anything noteworthy in Berlin.Yoshiko Fujinaga (Team Shiseido)
Qualification Mark:
2:28:13 - debut (1st, Nagoya 2009)
Other Major Results:
5000 m National Champion, 2000
5000 m, World Championships 1999
Alternate
You have to feel a little sorry for Tomo Morimoto (Team Tenmaya), the most experienced marathoner on the World Championships team after Shibui. The only reliably good marathoner on Team Tenmaya, a club somewhat infamous for one or two hit wonders, Morimoto was the alternate on last year's Beijing Olympics team despite running a faster time than Tenmaya teammate Yurika Nakamura who was chosen to run in the Olympics. In last month's London Marathon Morimoto had to break Akaba's mark of 2:25:40 to make the Berlin team, but she fell short with a 2:26:29 meaning that although she was nearly two minutes faster than Fujinaga's Nagoya-winning time she is again left sitting on the bench as alternate.Tomo Morimoto (Team Tenmaya)
Qualification Mark:
2:26:29 (8th, London 2009)
Other Major Results:
2:24:33 - PB (1st, Vienna 2006)
2:25:34 (2nd, Osaka 2008)
alternate, 2008 Beijing Olympics marathon team
(c) 2009 Brett Larner
all rights reserved
Comments