Skip to main content

Tokai University Head Coach Morozumi Goes Heavy on First-Years in Hakone Ekiden Lineup

translated and edited by Brett Larner
source articles at bottom


Powered by its formidable lineup of talented first-years, Tokai University is shooting for top three in Japan's biggest race.  On Dec. 16 the Tokai University men's ekiden team held a public practice session in Hiratsuka, Kanagawa ahead of the Jan. 2-3 Hakone Ekiden.  Of its sixteen-man Hakone entry roster, eight are first-years.  Four of those have run 13 minutes for 5000 m, four have run 28 minutes for 10000 m, and two have run 62 minutes for the half marathon.  Head coach Hayashi Morozumi, 50, told reporters, "I think you'll probably see a lot of the first-years on the final start list too.  It's jump or die.  If we take an interesting approach, we can make it a good race.  We have to take it to the champs Aoyama Gakuin University and not be afraid of failing.  Our goal is 3rd place.  I hope that we can go into it with every team member bringing the best of his abilities."

Morozumi plans a strong start.  On the First Stage he intends to put Shota Onizuka, who ran an all-time Asian junior #2 time of 1:02:03 at November's Ageo City Half Marathon, following on the Second Stage with Hayato Seki, winner of the Third Stage at October's Izumo Ekiden.  Both are first-years. "I'm excited to see what this kind of fresh blood can bring to those stages," Morozumi commented.  Onizuka promised to get things started fast, saying, "I want to get us into a good flow, whether that's running with Aoyama Gakuin or ahead of them."  Seki added, "I want to keep the team's momentum up on the most competitive stage.  I think we can take 1st as a team."

Morozumi also intends to use first-years on Hakone's two most important stages, the uphill Fifth Stage and the downhill Sixth Stage.  Conducting trial runs in training to identify potential candidates, Morozumi identified first-years Ryoji Tatezawa and Junnosuke Matsuo as possibilities for the Fifth Stage.  "Neither of them is affected by the demands of the climb," he said. "Tatezawa sits low down on his solid legs, an old-school style.  Matsuo has a lighter style like [former Aoyama Gakuin uphill star] Daichi Kamino. Both are well-suited.  They're not going to be called 'God of the Mountain' like Kamino but they are better on tough courses."  For the downhill he also identified a first-year.  "I am thinking of Reiri Nakashima," Morozumi said. "He showed something special during the trial run."

http://www.nikkansports.com/sports/athletics/news/1752780.html
http://www.nikkansports.com/sports/athletics/news/1752798.html
http://www.sanspo.com/sports/news/20161217/ath16121705020001-n2.html
http://www.sponichi.co.jp/sports/news/2016/12/17/kiji/20161217s00063000088000c.html

Comments

Most-Read This Week

Tokyo Marathon Top Japanese Man Tsubasa Ichiyama Works 4 Days a Week, Walked On in College

38,000 people ran the 2025 Tokyo Marathon . Every runner had their own story, but one of the most special was Tsubasa Ichiyama (Sunbelx). Despite being on almost nobody's radar, he outran some of the best in the country to finish as the top Japanese man. Ichiyama ran most of the race in the 3rd pace group, going through halfway in 1:02:44 and 30 km in 1:29:13. When the pacers stopped, he showed what he could really do. "I'm not good at downhills, so in the first part it was hard to run smoothly," he said at the post-race press conference. "But after the downhill part ended I got into my rhythm, and I think that helped me over the 2nd half." After dropping Asian Games gold medalist Hiroto Inoue (Mitsubishi Juko) and others, he quickly bore down on the Japanese athletes who had gone out faster in the 2nd pace group. Overtaking Paris Olympics 6th placer Akira Akasaki (Kyudenko) and Yuhei Urano (Fujitsu), at 39.8 km he caught all-time Japanese #2 man Yohei I...

Chepkirui Wins Nagoya Women's Marathon

Heavy-duty favorite Sheila Chepkirui took the win at Sunday's Nagoya Women's Marathon , pulling away after 30 km to cruise in for 1st in 2:20:40. Erratic pacing early saw the first and second groups only seconds apart for much of the first half of the race, the top group slower than planned and the 2nd group a bit ahead of schedule. At halfway in 1:10:37 the front group included Chepkirui, #2-ranked Ruti Aga and last year's runner-up Eunice Chumba , and Japanese contingent Sayaka Sato , Rika Kaseda , Natsuki Omori and Mao Uesugi . Omori was the first to drop, then Uesugi, then Aga, who ultimately dropped out before 30 km. When the pacers stopped at 30 km Chepkirui made a move that dropped Kaseda and strung out Chumba and Sato behind her, but all four came back together once before another surge put Kaseda away for good. As Chepkirui inched away Sato and Chumba passed each other repeatedly, and Chumba could only watch as the top Japanese runner got away from her again thi...

Who's Running Tokyo Worlds?

The Japanese marathon teams will be the most prestigious ones to be on for September's Tokyo World Championships, and with Sunday's Nagoya Women's Marathon the window for Japanese athletes to get onto the JAAF's shortlist closed. Who's on it? The final decision won't be made until Mar. 26, but let's look through the selection criteria and see who's guaranteed, who's pretty likely, and who has a chance. 1. Marathon medalists at the Paris Olympics - There weren't any, so nobody makes the team this way. Akira Akasaki (Kyudenko) and Yuka Suzuki (Daiichi Seimei) were the top placers, both of them running PBs in the Olympics to finish 6th. You'd think that would count for something a year later, but you'd think wrong. 2. JMC Series IV Champions - The top point scorers in the Japan Marathon Championship Series IV, which ran from April, 2023 to March, 2025, earn places on the marathon teams along with cash prizes. For women that's Yuka ...