Skip to main content

Wanjiru Wins Big With 16-Second PB in National H.S. Championships 3000 m

by Brett Larner

Despite going through the heats and final of the 1500 m and the qualifying heats for the 3000 m, Kenyans Rosemary Wanjiru (Aomori Yamada H.S.) and Mary Waithera (Sendai Ikuei H.S.) saved the best for last, braving temperatures over 30 degrees to smash their PBs and go 1-2 in the 3000 m final on the last day of the 2012 Japanese National H.S. Track & Field Championships, Aug. 2 and Niigata's Big Swan Stadium.  The winner of both Heat 1 and the 1500 m final, Waithera pushed the pace from the start but was unable to top Heat 3 winner Wanjiru, who lopped a stunning 16 seconds off her best to finish in a high-quality 8:51.97 for the win.  Unable to match Wanjiru, Waithera still took 6 seconds off her personal best as she finished a half second back in 8:52.59.  Heat 2 winner and Japanese favorite Miyuki Uehara (Kagoshima Joshi H.S.) was 3 seconds off her best but strong enough to hold off rival Sakiko Naito (Funabashi Civic H.S.) for 3rd in 9:09.90.

2012 Japanese National H.S. T&F Championships
Big Swan Stadium, Niigata, 7/29-8/2/12
click here for complete results

Girls' 3000 m Final
1. Rosemary Wanjiru (Kenya/Aomori Yamada H.S.) - 8:51.97
2. Mary Waithera (Kenya/Sendai Ikuei H.S.) - 8:52.59
3. Miyuki Uehara (Kagoshima Joshi H.S.) - 9:09.90
4. Sakiko Naito (Funabashi Civic H.S.) - 9:10.56
5. Nanako Kanno (Ritsumeikan Uji H.S.) - 9:11.13
6. Ami Hirose (Seiryo H.S.) - 9:12.04
7. Shihio Yahagi (Hachioji H.S.) - 9:15.21
8. Maki Izumida (Hakuho Joshi H.S.) - 9:15.27
9. Yuki Maekawa (Tottori Chuo Ikuei H.S.) - 9:15.32
10. Shiho Takeda (Tokiwa H.S.) - 9:15.53

Girls' 1500 m Final
1. Mary Waithera (Kenya/Sendai Ikuei H.S.) - 4:13.91
2. Saki Yoshimizu (Chikushi Joshi Gakuen H.S.) - 4:15.98
3. Shiho Takeda (Tokiwa H.S.) - 4:16.61
4. Rosemary Wanjiru (Kenya/Aomori Yamada H.S.) - 4:18.15
5. Momoko Akiyama (Hakuho Joshi H.S.) - 4:18.64

(c) 2012 Brett Larner
all rights reserved

Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Most-Read This Week

Endo, Nishikawa and Yamakawa Announce Corporate Team Changes

The SG Holdings men's corporate team announced on Oct. 1 that long-distance athletes Hyuga Endo and Yuichiro Nishikawa have joined its roster after leaving the Sumitomo Denko team. Endo, 28, won the Junior Olympics 3000 m while at Koriyama Nishi J.H.S. before going on to Gakuho Ishikawa H.S. where he was the the top Japanese placer in the 5000 m at the National High School Championships 2 years in a row. After graduating from Gakuho Ishikawa he joined the Sumitomo Denko team, winning the National Championships 5000 m in 2021. He won gold at the 2023 Asian Championships and represented Japan at the 2022 and 2023 World Championships. "I will give everything I have as part of the team and work hard toward helping it win the New Year Ekiden," he said of his new environment. Of his personal goals he said, "I want to focus on the 5000 m and reach new levels to compete internationally." Nishikawa, 28, was a member of Tokai University 's winning teams at the H...
Post a Comment
Read more

3 Athletes Provisionally Suspended After Positive Drug Tests at Asian Games (updated)

The International Testing Agency announced on Oct. 2 that provisional suspensions have been imposed on two athletes, Kazakhstan's Aiana Bolatbekkyzy in track and field, and Tajikistan's Issamjon Sharifov in tennis, after they tested positive for prohibited substances at the Asian Games in Nagoya, Aichi. Bolatbekkyzy, 19, tested positive for the steroid drostanolone in a sample collected during an in-competition test at the Games. A diuretic drug was found in the sample collected from Sharifov, 23. Update:  On Oct. 3 a third athlete, kurash wrestler Yash Kumar Chauhan  of India, was provisionally suspended after an in-competition test detected the steroid metandienone, the metabolic modulator GW1516, and the stimulant mephentermine in his system. source article: https://www.sanspo.com/article/20261002-X4FJLT5MMZKFND6WXPOESAKETQ/ translated by Brett Larner
Post a Comment
Read more