Skip to main content

Ngandu Outkicks Kawauchi for Takashimadaira 20k Title

by Brett Larner
photo by paul

A day after the Hakone Ekiden Yosenkai brought world record-setting depth to the 20 km distance, Tokyo played host to another 20 km road race packed with collegiate talent, the Takashimadaira Road Race.  Up front, former Nihon University ace Benjamin Ngandu (Kenya/Team Monteroza), Aoyama Gakuin University's Shunsuke Ishida and, seven days after running 2:11:40 for 2nd at the Melbourne Marathon, the indefatigable Yuki Kawauchi (Saitama Pref. Gov't) traded the lead not far off course record pace through the first three loops of Takashimadaira's perfectly flat four-corner 5 km course.  Ishida lost on the last loop, leaving Ngandu and Kawauchi to battle it out.  In the last km the bar chain-sponsored Ngandu's kick proved too much as he pulled away for the win in 59:14.  Kawauchi was close behind in 59:17, with Ishida falling back to 59:33 for 3rd.  Kawauchi time, which tied the top Japanese time at the Yosenkai, translates to close to 1:02:30 for the half marathon, a time which would be the second-fastest of his career and which signals his return to peak fitness ahead of next month's ING New York City Marathon.

Five days before Takashimadaira, Ishida's Aoyama Gakuin University team finished 5th at the Izumo Ekiden where it was the defending champion.  Running Takashimadaira with many of its junior and second-string runners, AGU dominated the race with seven men in the top ten, Yuhi Akiyama joining Ishida under the hour mark.  Its ten-man combined time of 10:03:41, run without most of the team's best members, was almost a minute faster than Yosenkai winner Tokyo Nogyo University, spelling good things for the rest of AGU's season.  Next up is the Nov. 3 National University Ekiden Championships.

38th Takashimadaira Road Race
Takashimadaira, Tokyo, 10/20/13

Men's 20 km
1. Benjamin Ngandu (Kenya/Team Monteroza) - 59:14
2. Yuki Kawauchi (Saitama Pref. Gov't) - 59:17
3. Shunsuke Ishida (Aoyama Gakuin Univ.) - 59:33
4. Yuhi Akiyama (Aoyama Gakuin Univ.) - 59:54
5. Masato Endo (Aoyama Gakuin Univ.) - 1:00:05
6. Soshi Takahashi (Aoyama Gakuin Univ.) - 1:00:25
7. Shun Yamamura (Aoyama Gakuin Univ.) - 1:00:26
8. Ryo Hashimoto (Aoyama Gakuin Univ.) - 1:00:35
9. Tomoya Yui (Tokai Univ.) - 1:00:38
10. Ryota Motegi (Aoyama Gakuin Univ.) - 1:00:38

Women's 20 km
1. Mitsuko Hirose - 1:14:15

Men's 10 km
1. Shun Kurihara - 29:41

Women's 10 km
1. Haruka Yamaguchi - 34:42

text (c) 2013 Brett Larner
all rights reserved

 photo (c) 2013 paul
all rights reserved
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Most-Read This Week

National University Championships Entry Lists and Streaming

The 95th National University Track and Field Championships run Friday through Monday at Nissan Stadium in Yokohama. The complete meet schedule and live results are here . The 10000 m races were already held separately earlier this season. Streaming starts at 9:00 a.m. Saturday Japan time, with separate field event channels and Day 2 and 3 streaming here . Top entries in each event with best performance in the qualifying window: Men 100 m Shoma Yamamoto (Hiroshima Univ.) - 10.04 Fukuto Komuro (Chuo Univ.) - 10.07 Naoki Nishioka (Tsukuba Univ.) - 10.09 Riku Oishi (Toyo Univ.) - 10.13 Kaito Kuroki (Chuo Univ.) - 10.14 Ryunosuke Mizuno (Waseda Univ.) - 10.14 Yugo Haitamataira (Juntendo Univ.) - 10.17 Shun Miyashita (Daito Bunka Univ.) - 10.19 200 m Akira Hayashi (Keio Univ.) - 20.36 Tomoru Funaki (Daito Bunka Univ.) - 20.39 Oma Asai (Tsukuba Univ.) - 20.47 Reishin Yamamoto (Toyo Univ.) - 20.49 Shingo Suzuki (Tokai Univ.) - 20.54 Haruto Nakamura (Fukuoka Univ.) - 20.55 400 m Shinya Hayashi...
Post a Comment
Read more

Yuasa and Niiya Win Hokkaido Marathon, 6 Qualify for Olympic Trials

  Six more people picked up qualifying spots for next year's MGC Race at yesterday's Hokkaido Marathon in Sapporo, guaranteeing themselves places at Japan's 2028 Los Angeles Olympics marathon trials. In the men's race, Hibiki Yoshida tried to break away from the massive lead group at 30 km, opening a 25-second lead between there and 35 km before getting cut down by the chase trio of Jin Yuasa , Ken Tansho and Masato Arao . All three stayed together until the very end, Yuasa showing the same kind of closing speed he had in winning 2025 Nobeoka Nishi Nippon Marathon and pulling away to win in 2:10:46. The debuting Tansho was next in 2:10:55, with Arao, 6th at last year's Sydney Marathon in an excellent 2:07:42, 3rd here in 2:10:59. By clearing 2:12:00 all three picked up MGC qualifying spots, freeing them up to go overseas next spring. Continuing a great season, Soka University 's Shoki Yamaguchi was 4th in 2:11:47, missing out on trials qualification but bea...
1 comment
Read more

Monterey Welcomes Student-Athletes from Sister City Nanao, Japan

a press release by the Monterey-Nanao Cross Country Exchange Project photos here Fourteen student-athletes from Nanao High School in Ishikawa Prefecture, Japan, recently completed a weeklong visit to the Monterey Peninsula as part of the Monterey–Nanao Cross Country Exchange Project , bringing together young people from the two Sister Cities through running, education, environmental stewardship, cultural exchange, and friendship. The seven boys and seven girls from Nanao were paired with 14 members of the Monterey High School cross country team and stayed in their homes throughout the visit. The week marked the first half of a reciprocal exchange that will continue when the Monterey students travel to Nanao later this year. The visitors received their first introduction to Monterey shortly after arriving at Monterey High School, walking with their hosts to Sister City Park and gathering for photographs beside the sign honoring Nanao — a fitting beginning for a week devoted to bringin...
Post a Comment
Read more