Sakamoto 2nd in Volksbank Muenster Marathon

Sakamoto 2nd in Volksbank Muenster Marathon - Japanese Overseas Results

by Brett Larner

Japanese athletes raced in three European road races in three different countries on Sunday, 2015 Zurich Marathon winner Yoshiko Sakamoto (Y.W.C.) leading the way at Germany's Volksbank Muenster Marathon. Starting off at a conservative pace that left her 20 seconds behind the lead group at 5 km and over a minute and a half behind by 15 km, over the second half she overtook three women, Ethiopian Belaynesh Yigezu, then Kenyans Janet Cheruiyot and Salina Jebet, to move into 2nd. 2015 Nairobi Marathon winner Elizabeth Rumokol of Kenya, the only woman in the field to have broken 2:30, took 1st in 2:33:01, Sakamoto next in 2:38:46 and Jebet 3rd in 2:42:27. "I wanted to try to run with the lead group, but they went out too fast," Sakamoto said post-race. "I was hoping for a faster time but I'm really, really happy to have gotten 2nd. This was the first time I've ever enjoyed myself while racing seriously."

In the Muesnter men's race 2016 Katsuta Marathon course record-setter Shingo Igarashi (Josai Univ. Coaching Staff) didn't have the same kind of day. With the leaders going out faster than planned on low-2:09 pace Igarashi let go after 5 km. Like Sakamoto he was left entirely alone, but in his case nobody came back to him. #1-ranked Duncan Koech of Kenya, still on track for the 2:10:25 course record at 30 km, took the win in 2:12:59, his countryman Rogers Melly next in 2:13:38 and pacer Hosea Kipkemboi choosing to finish the race in 2:13:59 for 3rd. Igarashi was a distant 8th in 2:20:58. "I had a minor stress fracture in April after Boston and had to take some time off," he said post-race. "I thought I had had enough time to get ready for this and felt light and fresh before the race, but my stamina wasn't where it needed to be."

In the Czech Republic, 2016 Gold Coast Airport Marathon winner Misato Horie (Team Noritz) ran the Birell Prague Grand Prix 10 km with teammate Kikuyo Tsuzaki, the winner of last year's Sydney Half Marathon. With winner Violah Jepchumba of Kenya missing the world record by just 3 seconds in 30:24, Horie could manage only 34:10 for 10th and Tsuzaki 35:20 for 13th.

At the U.K.'s Great North Run half marathon, 2:08:00 marathoner Kazuhiro Maeda (Team Kyudenko) replicated Tsuzaki's placing with a similar time margin from the front-end action. As local hero Mo Farah outran American Dathan Ritzenhein for a third-straight Great North Run title in 1:00:04, Maeda was a non-factor, 50 seconds off the leaders after 5 km and moving backwards from there to finish 13th in 1:06:20.

Volksbank Muenster Marathon
Muenster, Germany, 9/11/16
click here for complete results

Women
1. Elizabeth Rumokol (Kenya) - 2:33:01
2. Yoshiko Sakamoto (Japan/Y.W.C.) - 2:38:46
3. Salina Jebet (Kenya) - 2:42:27
4. Janet Cheruiyot (Kenya) - 2:44:54
5. Vanessa Rosler (Germany) - 3:00:12
-----
DNF - Belaynesh Yigezu (Ethiopia)

Men
1. Duncan Koech (Kenya) - 2:12:59
2. Rogers Melly (Kenya) - 2:13:38
3. Hosea Kipkemboi (Kenya) - 2:13:59
4. Joel Kositany (Kenya) - 2:14:22
5. Arnold Kipatoi (Kenya) - 2:17:20
-----
8. Shingo Igarashi (Japan/Josai Univ.) - 2:20:58

Birell Prague Grand Prix 10 km
Prague, Czech Republic, 9/10/16
click here for complete results

Women
1. Violah Jepchumba (Kenya) - 30:24
2. Joyciline Jepkosgei (Kenya) - 31:08
3. Afera Godfay (Ethiopia) - 31:49
4. Gladys Cherono (Kenya) - 31:58
5. Lucy Cheruiyot (Kenya) - 32:59
-----
10. Misato Horie (Japan/Noritz) - 34:10
13. Kikuyo Tsuzaki (Japan/Noritz) - 35:20

Great North Run Half Marathon
Newcastle, U.K., 9/11/16
click here for complete results

Men
1. Mo Farah (U.K.) - 1:00:04
2. Dathan Ritzenhein (U.S.A.) - 1:00:12
3. Emmanuel Bett (Kenya) - 1:01:22
4. Bashir Abdi (Belgium) - 1:02:03
5. Duncan Maiyo (Kenya) - 1:02:06
-----
13. Kazuhiro Maiyo (Japan/Kyudenko) - 1:06:20

text and photo © 2016 Brett Larner
all rights reserved

Hassan Runs NR/CR for Osaka Win, Dibaba Hits Women's CR, Yoshida and Shuley Earn Legends

This was maybe the most entertaining marathon in years. After rocking the 2nd leg at last year's Hakone Ekiden Hibiki Yoshida (Sunbelx) ran an incredible 1:01:01 CR for the 21.9 km New Year Ekiden 2nd leg last month, equivalent to a 58:47 half marathon. That predicted a 2:03:27 marathon if he ever ran one, and when Yoshida announced he was debuting at this year's Osaka Marathon he wasted no time in saying it'd be a shot at the 2:04:55 NR. Things went out fast enough with a 14:50 split through 5 km, 2:05:11 pace, but Yoshida just couldn't hold back and took off at 8 km. He clearly DGAF about what was probably going to happen as his projected finish kept getting faster, 2:04:41, 2:04:15, 2:03:51, 2:03:40, edging closer and closer to what his New Year time predicted, but not helped along by the fact that he missed 4 out of his first 5 drink bottles. People laughed, and then cheered him on. 30 km was the first time he slowed, his finish projection dropping to 2:03:53, an...

Osaka Marathon Preview

The Osaka Marathon is Sunday, one of Japan's biggest mass-participation races and the next stop on the calendar for its elite marathoners hoping to qualify for the L.A. Olympics marathon trials in the fall of 2027. Last year it snowed mid-race, but this year is looking warmer than ideal given the season, with sunny skies, almost no wind, and temps forecast to be 11˚ at the start and rising to 19˚ by the time the winners are finishing. NHK is broadcasting Osaka with a heavy emphasis on the men's race, and if you've got a VPN you should be able to watch it from overseas. There's also official streaming on Youtube starting at 8:30 a.m. local time, although it doesn't look like it's the same as what NHK will be showing. Given Osaka's history at the elite level as the continuation of the men-only Lake Biwa Mainichi Marathon, the women's field is small relative to the men's, just enough to tick World Athletics' label requirements and with almost no do...

Arao Becomes 1st Man in 40 Years to Score Back-to-Back Ome Road Race Wins

30 km is an under-appreciated distance, and both of Japan's big races at that distance happened Sunday. At the Ome Road Race in western Tokyo's mountains, Sydney Marathon 6th-placer Masato Arao (ND Software) became the first man since the great Kunimitsu Ito in 1985-1986 to win back-to-back years. Arao, who finished 39th of 40 on his leg at the New Year Ekiden last month, stayed in the pack through 20 km before going on the attack, putting over a minute on New Year Ekiden Sixth Stage CR breaker Yudai Shimazu (GMO). Sub-1:31 winning times are rare on the tough and hilly Ome course, but Arao's 1:30:54 almost equaled his 1:30:50 from last year, making him the first Japanese man ever to do it twice and second only to CR holder Ezekiel Cheboitibin . Next up Arao races the Tokyo Marathon, where he is targeting sub-2:06. Shimazu was 2nd in 1:31:58 and Yuta Nakayama (JR Higashi Nihon) 3rd in 1:32:07. Cheboitibin was only 9th, running almost 8 minutes off his CR in 1:36:42. Shi...

japan running news

Search This Blog