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'Why Japan's Incredible Long-Distance Runners Will Never Win the London Marathon'

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/asia/why-japans-incredible-longdistance-runners-will-never-win-the-london-marathon-10182050.html

Two Japanese long distance runners have, in fact, won the London Marathon.  The coach cited in the article, Kenji Takao, is a middle and long distance track coach at Ritsumeikan University, a Kansai Region school in Kyoto that, being outside the Tokyo-centric Kanto Region, does not participate in the Hakone Ekiden.
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Comments

Mike Peters said…
Props to JRN for always being on the money and calling it how it is. Apparently the man who wrote the article regarding Japanese marathoners in London didn't do his homework in his own backyard. Without JRN setting it straight, people would actually believe that nonsense.
April 24, 2015 at 7:17 PM
Unknown said…
Finn has deep insight into Kenyan running, but his analysis of Japanese running seems a bit reductionist. I think he needs to spend a little more time on his feet in Japan to gain a more comprehensive picture of athletics here...(shame because he did so for Kenyan athletes).
I mean, the following quote may be a valid statement about the attitude of HS and collegiate running coaches in Japan, but it's not that much different from those of NCAA XC/Track coaches
"...coaches often don't think about the long-term prospects of their athletes, particularly at high school and university level."
There's a lot of room for improvement in Japan, but the situation is a bit more complex than Finn's analysis.
April 27, 2015 at 4:56 AM
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