Skip to main content

Daito Bunka University Defends Nikko Irohazaka Women's Ekiden Title

http://mainichi.jp/articles/20161128/ddl/k09/050/090000c

translated and edited by Brett Larner

The 3rd edition of the Nikko Irohazaka Women's Ekiden took place Nov. 27 in Nikko, Tochigi.  Fifteen teams from fourteen universities six stage, 23.4 km course with 875 m net elevation gain, with Daito Bunka University winning for the second year in a row in 1:32:41.  Hakuoh University was the top Tochigi team at 7th. Daito Bunka started slow, in 8th at the end of the First Stage but its second runner Kasumi Yamaguchi setting a new stage record. Daito Bunka moved up gradually through the field from there, finally going from 2nd to 1st on the anchor stage.  Osaka Geijutsu University was 2nd, with the Tokyo Nogyo University A-team taking 3rd.

The Nikko Irohazaka Women's Ekiden is organized by local businesses and the Nikko city government, who together aim to earn a name for Nikko as "The runner's holy land."  The ekiden was established in 2014 with the hope of creating a "women's Hakone Ekiden."  Its course begins at 410 m elevation at Nikko Daiyagawa Park, passing the World Heritage Site shrines of Nikko before climbing up the Irohazaka ascent to Nikko Futarasan Shrine at 1285 m elevation.  According to organizers, with an almost entirely uphill route it is one of Japan's best mountain race courses.

Translator's note: The Nikko Irohazaka course almost perfectly matches the length and elevation gain of the Hakone Ekiden's legendary Fifth Stage. However, while one university man on a ten-man team runs Hakone's Fifth, Nikko Irohazaka divides it into six short sections with no woman running longer than 5.2 km.

3rd Nikko Irohazaka Women's Ekiden
Nikko, Tochigi, 11/27/16
15 teams, 6 stages, 23.4 km
click here for complete results

Top Team Results
1. Daito Bunka Univ. - 1:32:41
2. Osaka Geijutsu Univ - 1:33:06
3. Tokyo Nogyo Univ. A - 1:33:36
4. Kansai Gaikokugo Univ. - 1:33:47
5. Chuo Univ. - 1:34:47
6. Tokyo Nogyo Univ. B - 1:37:32
7. Hakuoh Univ. - 1:37:43
8. Toyo Univ. - 1:38:33
9. Seitoku Univ. - 1:38:35
10. Nihon Joshi Taiiku Univ. - 1:39:08

Stage Best Performances

 First Stage (4.7 km, ~100 m ascent)  
1. Rino Goshima (Chuo Univ.) - 16:55

 Second Stage (5.2 km, ~200 m ascent) 
1. Kasumi Yamaguchi (Daito Bunka Univ.) - 18:11 -  CR

 Third Stage (3.5 km, ~100 m ascent) 
1. Ayano Morita (Osaka Geijutsu Univ.) - 14:53

 Fourth Stage (3.0 km, ~100 m ascent) 
1. Noe Ito (Daito Bunka Univ.) - 13:30

 Fifth Stage (3.5 km, ~400 m ascent) 
1. Nana Ogawa (Tokyo Nogyo Univ. A) - 14:40

 Sixth Stage (3.5 km, ~25 m descent) 
1. Saki Minakawa (Tokyo Nogyo Univ. B) - 12:10

© 2016 Brett Larner
all rights reserved
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Most-Read This Week

World Marathon Majors Japanese Entries

We're back from a short summer break. A week and a half out from the first race of the season's four World Marathon Majors races, here's a look at Japanese athletes scheduled to run. Everything right now is about qualifying for the MGC Race, the official trials race for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics to be held in the fall of 2027 in Nagoya. The JAAF makes no mistake about wanting to keep its top people racing domestically where it can get a share of revenue from the TV broadcast and race operations, so anyone who decides to race overseas has to do it in a WA platinum label race and hit either 2:06:30 or 2:23:30, regardless of place, course or weather if they want to make the trials. At the same time concessions are make for domestic races, like for example the late-August Hokkaido Marathon where up to 3 men and 3 women can qualify if they go 2:12:00 or 2:32:00. As a result, you get things like last year where amateur runner Yudai Fukuda made the trials by finishing 3rd Jap...
1 comment
Read more

Nakajima Breaks 100 mH NR Twice, Kitaguchi Returns - August Track Roundup

Catching up on what's been happening in track and field this month during our summer break: Men's 3000 m NR holder Nagiya Mori was just off his 5000 m PB at the IFAM Oordegem meet in Belgium on Aug. 1, taking 16th in 13:15.01. Shota Nakano was 26th of 28 in 13:35.02. This year's national champion Ryoma Aoki ran the 3000 mSC but didn't finish. Naoto Hasegawa was the only Japanese athlete at Mutaz Essa Barshim 's What Gravity Tour stop at the Monaco Athletics Festival meet on Aug. 5. Having cleared 2.30 m for the first time earlier this year Hasegawa only managed 2.18 m in Monaco, taking 7th of 10. There were a lot of good performances at the Fuji Hokuriku World Trial meet in Fujiyoshida on Aug. 9, but the one that got the headlines was a 12.62 (-0.2) NR in the women's 100 mH by Hitomi Nakajima . Nakajima actually did it twice, running 12.62 (+2.0) in the heats before repeating in the final. Masumi Aoki also ran big in the heats, with a 12.68 (+2.0) for al...
1 comment
Read more

Asian Games Competition Schedule

The daily athletics event schedule for September's Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games . Wednesday, Sept. 23 7:30 - Women's / Men's Half Marathon Race Walk Final Thursday, Sept. 24 10:00 - Women's Heptathlon 100 mH 10:20 - Mixed 4x400 m Relay Heats 10:30 - Men's Triple Jump Heats 10:40 - Women's Heptathlon High Jump 19:05 - Men's High Jump Heats 19:13 - Women's Heptathlon Shot Put 19:33 - Women's 100 m Heats 19:44 - Women's Triple Jump Final 20:08 - Men's 100 m Heats 20:55 - Men's Discus Throw Final 21:00 - Women's Heptathlon 200 m 21:25 - Women's 10000 m Final 22:15 - Mixed 4x400 m Relay Final Friday, Sept. 25 10:00 - Women's Heptathlon Long Jump 10:30 - Men's 400 m Heats 11:25 - Women's Heptathlon Javelin Throw 19:05 - Women's Shot Put Final 19:13 - Women's 100 m Semifinal 19:33 - Men's 100 m Semifinal 20:03 - Women's Pole Vault Final 20:11 - Women's Heptathlon 800 m 20:32 - Men's 10000 m Final 20:40 - M...
Post a Comment
Read more