by Brett Larner
The national corporate federation has released the entry lists for this year's National Corporate Half Marathon Championships, to be held Mar. 20 in Yamaguchi, this year with the addition of a women's road 10 km.
Notable names include men's half marathon national record holder Atsushi Sato (Team Chugoku Denryoku) who has been out of competition since finishing 3rd at the 2010 Tokyo Marathon, 2011 World Championships team member Yukihiro Kitaoka (Team NTN), 2010 Nagoya Half Marathon winner Jacob Wanjuki (Kenya/Team Aichi Seiko), 2010 Marugame Half Marathon winner Daniel Gitau (Kenya/Team Fujitsu), 2011 Tamana Half Marathon winner Dishon Karukuwa (Kenya/Team Aisan Kogyo), former university star Masato Kihara (Team Kanebo), sub-28 track ace Ryuji Ono (Team Asahi Kasei), and, continuing his comeback from the injuries that knocked him out of the 2008 Beijing Olympics marathon, Satoshi Osaki (Team NTT Nishi Nihon).
The women's half marathon features the top two women from January's Osaka International Women's Marathon, Yukiko Akaba (Team Hokuren) and Mai Ito (Team Otsuka Seiyaku), the top two Japanese half marathoners of 2010 and identical twins Yoko and Hiroko Miyauchi (Team Kyocera), 2010 Sanyo Women's Half Marathon winner Shoko Mori (Team Otsuka Seiyaku), 2009 Miyazaki Women's Half Marathon winner Maki Suzawa (Team Yamada Denki), and the debut of top-level Kenyan Sally Kaptich Chepyego (Team Kyudenko).
Five women in the 10 km hold recent 10000 m PBs under 33 minutes, the fastest of them Seika Nishikawa (Team Sysmex) with a mark of 32:38.94. Defending 1500 m national champion Mika Yoshikawa (Team Panasonic) is also on the list.
2011 National Jitsugyodan Half Marathon Championships Entry List Highlights
Men's Half Marathon
Atsushi Sato (Team Chugoku Denryoku) - 1:00:25 (Udine '07) - NR
Jacob Wanjuki (Kenya/Team Aichi Seiko) - 1:00:32 (Nagoya '10)
James Mwangi (Kenya/Team NTN) - 1:00:34
Daniel Gitau (Kenya/Team Fujitsu) - 1:01:08 (Marugame '10)
Joseph Gitau (Kenya/Team JFE Steel) - 1:01:19 (Sapporo Int'l '08)
Masato Kihara (Team Kanebo) - 1:01:50 (Ageo '06)
Yuko Matsumiya (Team Konica Minolta) - 1:01:53 (Jitsugyodan '00)
Soji Ikeda (Team Yakult) - 1:02:10 (Kyoto '08)
Atsushi Fujita (Team Fujitsu) - 1:02:12 (Sapporo Int'l '04)
Tomoaki Bungo (Team Asahi Kasei) - 1:02:15 (Marugame '10)
Yukihiro Kitaoka (Team NTN) - 1:02:17 (Jitsugyodan '09)
Dishon Karukuwa (Kenya/Team Aisan Kogyo) - 1:02:20 (Tamana '11)
Satoshi Osaki (Team NTT Nishi Nihon) - 1:02:24 (Jitsugyodan '07)
Tomoya Shimizu (Team Sagawa Express) - 1:02:28 (Marugame '06)
Takeshi Kumamoto (Team Toyota) - 1:02:29 (Jitsugyodan '07)
Sota Hoshi (Team Fujitsu) - 1:02:30 (Marugame '09)
Ryuji Ono (Team Asahi Kasei) - debut - 27:53.19 (10000 m, Niigata '08)
Women's Half Marathon
Yukiko Akaba (Team Hokuren) - 1:08:11 (Jitsugyodan '08)
Yoko Miyauchi (Team Kyocera) - 1:09:51 (Marugame '10)
Hiroko Miyauchi (Team Kyocera) - 1:09:54 (Miyazaki '08)
Mika Okunaga (Team Kyudenko) - 1:09:57 (Miyazaki '06)
Megumi Seike (Team Sysmex) - 1:10:08 (Jitsugyodan '09)
Maki Suzawa (Team Yamada Denki) - 1:10:23 (Jitsugyodan '09)
Miho Notagashira (Team Wacoal) - 1:10:25 (Marugame '05)
Hiroki Shoi (Team Nihon ChemiCon) - 1:10:48 (Jitsugyodan '10)
Ikuyo Yamashita (Team Mitsui Sumitomo Kaijo) - 1:10:53 (Matsue '07)
Mai Ito (Team Otsuka Seiyaku) - 1:11:11 (Kyoto '06)
Kaori Urata (Team Tenmaya) - 1:11:35 (Marugame '09)
Shoko Mori (Team Otsuka Seiyaku) - 1:11:41 (Sanyo '10)
Sally Kaptich Chepyego (Kenya/Team Kyudenko) - debut - 31:39.84 (10000 m, Kobe '07)
Women's 10 km
Seika Nishikawa (Team Sysmex) - 32:38.94 (Fukuroi '09)
Tomoka Inadomi (Team Wacoal) - 32:41.57
Rei Ohara (Team Tenmaya) - 32:46 (Sanyo '09)
Misato Tanaka (Team Sysmex) - 32:51 (Sanyo '09)
Ai Igarashi (Team Sysmex) - 32:56
Mika Yoshikawa (Team Panasonic) - 33:07
(c) 2011 Brett Larner
all rights reserved
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