Skip to main content

Federation Announces Men's World Championships Marathon Team

by Brett Larner

On Mar. 31 after a delay following the Mar. 11 disasters, Rikuren, the Japanese athletics federation, announced the lineup for the men's marathon team for August's World Championships in Daegu, Korea. The team is a strong one, inexperienced but fresh, with 2010 Asian Games silver medalist Yukihiro Kitaoka (Team NTN) and the 3rd and 4th place finishers from both the 2011 Tokyo Marathon and 2011 Lake Biwa Mainichi Marathon, Yuki Kawauchi (Saitama T&F Assoc.), Yoshinori Oda (Team Toyota), Hiroyuki Horibata (Team Asahi Kasei) and Kentaro Nakamoto (Team Yasukawa Denki). All but Kitaoka hold PBs under 2:10 set this year. No alternate was officially named.

Also formally confirmed for the women's team was defending World Championships silver medalist Yoshimi Ozaki (Team Daiichi Seimei) who secured a place by winning the 2011 Yokohama International Women's Marathon in a course record 2:23:56. The remaining four women will be named following next month's Boston Marathon, with the leading current contenders being, in order, 2011 Osaka International Women's Marathon winner Yukiko Akaba (Team Hokuren), 2011 Yokohama runner-up Remi Nakazato (Team Daihatsu) and 2011 Osaka runner-up Mai Ito (Team Otsuka Seiyaku).

2011 World Championships Men's Marathon Team

Hiroyuki Horibata (Team Asahi Kasei)
Born: Oct. 28, 1986 (24 yrs.)
PB: 2:09:25 - 2011 Lake Biwa Mainichi Marathon, 3rd
Other main results:
2:11:47 - 2008 Tokyo Marathon, 9th


Yuki Kawauchi (Saitama T&F Assoc.)
Born: Mar. 5, 1987 (24 yrs.)
PB: 2:08:37 - 2011 Tokyo Marathon, 3rd
Other main results:
2:12:36 - 2010 Tokyo Marathon, 4th



Yukihiro Kitaoka (Team NTN)
Born: Nov. 2, 1982 (28 yrs.)
PB: 2:10:51 - 2010 Lake Biwa Mainichi Marathon, 4th
Other main results:
2:12:46 - 2010 Asian Games Marathon, 2nd
2009 World Half Marathon Championships - 21st
2008 World Half Marathon Championships - 32nd

Kentaro Nakamoto (Team Yasukawa Denki)
Born: Dec. 7, 1982 (28 yrs.)
PB: 2:09:31 - 2011 Lake Biwa Mainichi Marathon, 4th
Other main results:
2:11:42 - 2010 Beppu-Oita Mainichi Marathon, 8th
2:13:53 - 2009 Tokyo Marathon, 9th
2:13:54 - 2008 Nobeoka Nishi Nippon Marathon, 3rd
2:15:21 - 2008 Hokkaido Marathon, 2nd

Yoshinori Oda (Team Toyota)
Born: Dec. 5, 1980 (30 yrs.)
PB: 2:09:03 - 2011 Tokyo Marathon, 4th (Japanese debut marathon all-time #3)
Other main results:
2009 World Half Marathon Championships - 28th
2004 World Half Marathon Championships - 16th

(c) 2011 Brett Larner
all rights reserved

Comments

Most-Read This Week

Nakajima Breaks 100 mH NR Twice, Kitaguchi Returns - August Track Roundup

Catching up on what's been happening in track and field this month during our summer break: Men's 3000 m NR holder Nagiya Mori was just off his 5000 m PB at the IFAM Oordegem meet in Belgium on Aug. 1, taking 16th in 13:15.01. Shota Nakano was 26th of 28 in 13:35.02. This year's national champion Ryoma Aoki ran the 3000 mSC but didn't finish. Naoto Hasegawa was the only Japanese athlete at Mutaz Essa Barshim 's What Gravity Tour stop at the Monaco Athletics Festival meet on Aug. 5. Having cleared 2.30 m for the first time earlier this year Hasegawa only managed 2.18 m in Monaco, taking 7th of 10. There were a lot of good performances at the Fuji Hokuriku World Trial meet in Fujiyoshida on Aug. 9, but the one that got the headlines was a 12.62 (-0.2) NR in the women's 100 mH by Hitomi Nakajima . Nakajima actually did it twice, running 12.62 (+2.0) in the heats before repeating in the final. Masumi Aoki also ran big in the heats, with a 12.68 (+2.0) for al...

Asian Games Competition Schedule

The daily athletics event schedule for September's Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games . Wednesday, Sept. 23 7:30 - Women's / Men's Half Marathon Race Walk Final Thursday, Sept. 24 10:00 - Women's Heptathlon 100 mH 10:20 - Mixed 4x400 m Relay Heats 10:30 - Men's Triple Jump Heats 10:40 - Women's Heptathlon High Jump 19:05 - Men's High Jump Heats 19:13 - Women's Heptathlon Shot Put 19:33 - Women's 100 m Heats 19:44 - Women's Triple Jump Final 20:08 - Men's 100 m Heats 20:55 - Men's Discus Throw Final 21:00 - Women's Heptathlon 200 m 21:25 - Women's 10000 m Final 22:15 - Mixed 4x400 m Relay Final Friday, Sept. 25 10:00 - Women's Heptathlon Long Jump 10:30 - Men's 400 m Heats 11:25 - Women's Heptathlon Javelin Throw 19:05 - Women's Shot Put Final 19:13 - Women's 100 m Semifinal 19:33 - Men's 100 m Semifinal 20:03 - Women's Pole Vault Final 20:11 - Women's Heptathlon 800 m 20:32 - Men's 10000 m Final 20:40 - M...

Federation Tells World Championships Marathoner Horibata To Go On Diet

http://hochi.yomiuri.co.jp/sports/etc/news/20110307-OHT1T00258.htm translated by Brett Larner Having made the 2011 World Championships marathon team by running a PB of 2:09:25 to come in 3rd overall and as the top Japanese finisher at the Mar. 6 Lake Biwa Mainichi Marathon, Hiroyuki Horibata (24, Team Asahi Kasei), talked to the media at Osaka Airport on Mar. 7. Following Sunday's race Rikuren director Keisuke Sawaki , 67, told Horibata, "Let's cut things down a bit until the World Championships," directing him to go on a diet. The 189 cm Horibata weighs 72 kg [~6'3", 160 lbs]. When he joined Team Asahi Kasei in 2005 at age 18 he weighed 65 kg, and this weight is still generally listed on his profile at races and in the media. "For some reason it never changes," he said with a grin. His coach Takeshi Soh , 58, commented, "If he was hungrier for glory his world would change completely," slapping the 'heavyweight division runner...