Skip to main content

An Interview With World Championships Marathoner Kentaro Nakamoto

http://www.yaskawa.co.jp/activities/track-field/movie/interview01.html

translated and edited by Brett Larner

What kind of training have you been doing this summer?
I've been doing mileage in Kokonoemachi, Oita, for weeks.  The course is really difficult, so the focus has been on building up my legs and improving my stamina.  It's hard before a marathon, but I feel like things have come around pretty well.

How did you feel about the Sapporo International Half Marathon?
I did it coming right off training so I had some fatigue, but the goal was to go out hard and see how long I could hang on.  That's what I did, but partway through I started to gradually lose touch and drop back.  I think working on that part of the race has been the focus of my training since then.  Foreign athletes and top-class Japanese athletes ran it, including two other guys who will run the World Championships marathon, so there were really a lot strong people there and I was pretty nervous, but it went well. [Nakamoto finished 17th in 1:05:02 ahead of World Championships teammates Yoshinori Oda (Team Toyota) and Yuki Kawauchi (Saitama Pref.).

What does your final training schedule look like?
[After Sapporo there was] one more training camp in Kokonoemachi, Oita, then up to Hokkaido for a week or so for another camp.  In August the same thing again, a training camp in Oita prefecture's Kokonoemachi then another in Hokkaido for my final training.  I've focused on solid mileage and getting ready to deal with the heat of a summer marathon.  Of course my main goal in the time that's left is to fine-tune my body to be absolutely ready for the marathon.

A training camp means the environment changes, but more than just being exciting it means that you can get good training done, that the quality is going to go up.  That means that you have to take good care of yourself, and Oita prefecture is famous for hot springs so I've been using them to help recover when I'm worn out.

Do you have a message for all your supporters and fans?
Things have been going according to plan and my base is there the way we wanted it, so in the time left I want to put on the finishing touches to my training and arrive at the start line in the best condition possible.  Thank you all for your support and please cheer for me in the race.

Comments

Most-Read This Week

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...

Nagoya Asian Games Test Event Canceled After Insulation Falls From Venue Ceiling

A section of insulation material fell from the ceiling of Nagoya Kinjo Futo Arena, the official venue for squash competition at September's Nagoya Asian Games. There were no injuries, but the city suspended use of the arena until its safety could be guaranteed, resulting in the cancelation of the Asian Games squash test event which was scheduled to have begun on May 14. It is not yet clear whether the arena will be usable for the Asian Games as planned. According to city officials, arena staff found that the insulation material had fallen onto a work walkway 13 m above the ground on the night of May 11. The fallen material was 3.6 m long, 50 cm wide and 2.5 km thick, and was found to be waterlogged. The cause of the accident is unknown, but it is possible that it was caused by rainwater leaking in from the roof. The same insulation material is installed across the entire ceiling, and the city plans to check for the extent of the possible flooding. Asked whether the arena will be re...

Everything You Need to Know About the 2026 Hakone Ekiden

The Hakone Ekiden is the world's biggest road race, 2 days of road relay action with Japan's 20 best university teams racing 10 half marathon-scale legs from central Tokyo to the mountains east of Mount Fuji and back. The level just keeps going higher and higher , hitting the point this year where there are teams with 10-runner averages of 13:33.10 for 5000 m, 27:55.98 for 10000 m, and 1:01:20 for the half marathon. It's never been better, and with great weather in the forecast it's safe to say this could be one of the best races in Hakone's 102-year history, especially on Day One. If you've seen it then you know NTV's live broadcast is the best sports broadcast in the world, with the pre-race show kicking off at 7:00 a.m. Japan time on the 2nd and 3rd and the race starting at 8:00 a.m. sharp. If you've got a VPN you should be able to watch it on TVer starting at 7:50 a.m. on the 2nd , and again at 7:50 a.m. on the 3rd . There's even a 2-hour high...