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Matsunaga and Nakatani Score Bronze - World University Games Day Two Japanese Results

by Brett Larner

 Daisuke Matsunaga (Toyo Univ.) became the first Japanese athletics medalist of the 2015 Gwangju World University Games on day two of competition, winning bronze in the men's 20 km in 1:22:06 after falling just over 30 seconds off a close race between eventual gold medalist Dane Bird-Smith (Australia) and Benjamin Thorne (Canada).

12 hours later, Keisuke Nakatani (Komazawa Univ.) repeated the feat in the final track final of the day, winning bronze in the men's 10000 m in 29:19.30 four seconds back from gold medalist Igor Maximov (Russia) and just losing out to Nicolae-Alexandru Soare (Romania) for silver.  After winning the 5000 m and 10000 m at May's Kanto Regional University Track and Field Championships and running a 28:31.84 best for 10000 m and winning the 3000 mSC national title in June, Hironori Tsuetaki (Chuo Gakuin Univ.) had a rare off day, finishing 9th in just 29:52.91.

Sprinter Anna Doi (Daito Bunka Univ.) made it to the women's 200 m semifinals before lining up for the 100 m final where she was 7th in 11.70.  Takamasa Kitagawa (Juntendo Univ.) made it though to the men's 400 m final, just, but teammate Kentaro Sato (Josai Univ.) was left behind in the semis.  Also making the finals in the women's 5000 m were Natsuki Omori (Ritsumeikan Univ.) and, doubling from the 10000 m a day earlier, Rina Koeda (Daito Bunka Univ.).  Kotaro Taniguchi (Chuo Univ.) and Takuya Nagata (Hosei Univ.) both qualified for the men's 200 m semifinals, Taniguchi winning his opening heat in 20.90 and Nagata taking his quarterfinal in 21.04.  In the men's 100 m Yuki Koike (Keio Univ.) was eliminated in the semifinals despite a 10.35 season best.

World University Games Day Two Japanese Results
Gwangju, South Korea, July 9, 2015
click here for complete results

Men's 10000 m Final
1. Igor Maximov (Russia) - 29:15.30
2. Nicolae-Alexandru Soare (Romania) - 29:18.71
3. Keisuke Nakatani (Japan) - 29:19.30
4. Vladimir Nikitin (Russia) - 29:20.20
5. Soufiane Bouchikhi (Belgium) - 29:24.21
-----
9. Hironori Tsuetaki (Japan) - 29:52.91
12. Kazuto Kawabata (Japan) - 30:06.42

Women's 5000 m Heat 1
1. Kristia Maki (Czech Republic) - 16:18.10 - Q
2. Daria Maslova (Kyrgyzstan) - 16:18.40 - Q
3. Jennifer Wenth (Austria) - 16:18.58 - Q
4. Natsuki Omori (Japan) - 16:18.99 - Q
5. Elif Karabulut (Turkey) - 16:21.94 - Q

Women's 5000 m Heat 2
1. Camille Buscomb (New Zealand) - 16:33.77 - Q
2. Rina Koeda (Japan) - 16:34.25 - Q
3. Sara Sutherland (U.S.A.) - 16:34.49 - Q
4. Rachel Cliff (Canada) - 16:36.87 - Q
5. Paulina Kaczynska (Poland) - 16:36.94 - Q

Men's 400 m Semifinal 1
1. Leaname Maotoanong (Botswana) - 45.77 - Q
2. Jan Tesar (Czech Republic) - 45.98 - Q
3. Takamasa Kitagawa (Japan) - 46.25 - q

Men's 400 m Semifinal 2
1. Luguelin Miguel Santos Aquino (Dominican Republic) - 46.01 - Q
2. Sakaria Kamberuka (Botswana) - 46.14 - Q
3. Kentaro Sato (Japan) - 46.36

Women's 200 m Heat 3 -0.8 m/s
1. Giulia Riva (Italy) - 23.99 - Q
2. Hanne Claes (Belgium) - 23.99 - Q
3. Omolara Grace Omotoso (Nigeria) - 24.45 - Q
4. Anna Doi (Japan) - 24.57 - q

Men's 200 m Heat 1 +1.6 m/s
1. Kotaro Taniguchi (Japan) - 20.90 - Q
2. David Gerson Semedo Neves Lima (Portugal) - 21.04 - Q
3. Leonel Bonon (Dominican Republic) - 21.82 - Q

Men's 200 m Heat 7 -0.1 m/s
1. Mobolade Abimbola Ajomale (Canada) - 21.13 - Q
2. Takuya Nagata (Japan) - 21.25 - Q
3. Andrew James McCabe (Australia) - 21.33 - Q

Men's 200 m Quarterfinal 2 -1.5 m/s
1. Viacheslav Kolesnichenko (Russia) - 21.01 - Q
2. Kotaro Taniguchi (Japan) - 21.09 - Q
3. Leon Powell (U.S.A.) - 21.20 - Q

Men's 200 m Quarterfinal 4 +0.4 m/s
1. Takuya Nagata (Japan) - 21.04 - Q
2. Mobolade Abimbola Ajomale (Canada) - 21.13 - Q
3. Chun-Han Yang (Taiwan) - 21.16 - Q

Women's 100 m Semifinal 3 +1.8 m/s
1. Viktoriya Zyabkina (Kazakhstan) - 11.27 - Q
2. Lina Grincikaite-Samuole (Lithuania) - 11.46 - Q
3. Alexandra Bezekova (Slovakia) - 11.56 - q
4. Anna Doi (Japan) - 11.61 - q

Women's 100 m Final +0.4 m/s
1. Viktoriya Zyabkina (Kazakhstan) - 11.23
2. Shimarya Crystal Williams (Jamaica) - 11.46
3. Elena Kozlova (Russia) - 11.47
-----
7. Anna Doi (Japan) - 11.70

Men's 100 m Semifinal 1 +1.8 m/s
1. Ronald Baker (U.S.A.) - 10.14 - Q
2. Kukyoung Kim (South Korea) - 10.16 - Q
3. Yang Yang (China) - 10.24 - Q
4. Jin Su Jung (Australia) - 10.28 - Q
5. Yuki Koike (Japan) - 10.35

Men's 20 km Race Walk Final
1. Dane Bird-Smith (Australia) - 1:21:30
2. Benjamin Thorne (Canada) - 1:21:33
3. Daisuke Matsunaga (Japan) - 1:22:06
-----
8. Tomohiro Noda (Japan) - 1:25:36

(c) 2015 Brett Larner
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