Skip to main content

With Large Way to Go to Overtake Japan, Chinese Media Asks How Far Behind China is in the Marathon

http://www.excite.co.jp/News/chn_soc/20161201/Recordchina_20161201005.html

translated and edited by Brett Larner

On Nov. 29 the Chinese media outlet Tencent published a column examining why China is not the equal of Japan in the marathon.  At the Nov. 20 Ageo City Half Marathon in Saitama, Japan, 196 men, all Japanese and most university students, ran faster than 1 hour 6 minutes.  No Chinese men have cleared that time this year.  Even going back two years, only a total of two have done it.

According the the Tencent column, Japan far surpasses China in distance running because "Japan's running boom has been happening for 40 years, and what keeps its fire lit is its women.  A large number of housewives run to relieve stress, and it is said that a sport that tests patience and mental power like the marathon is ideal for the Japanese woman.  On the other hand, few Chinese women run to relieve stress, with many instead involved in community plaza dances, large groups of middle-aged women who dance together in parks.

The article also pointed to inadequate physical education programs as part of school curricula, the relatively small number of races and the lack of interest and participation in them.  Sounding a positive note about current trends, however, it said, "As health awareness increases within China, its running boom is also expanding.  The marathon is becoming a popular sport for Chinese people but the difference with Japan is still considerable."

Translator's note:  As JRN documented earlier this year, China has grown into the world's third-largest marathon market behind Japan and the United States.  While it is still far behind the two leaders in terms of quality and quantity it will be no surprise to see it overtake both in the foreseeable future. The Abbott World Marathon Majors have already discussed adding a Chinese race, either the Beijing Marathon or Shanghai Marathon, to the series to reflect the growth in an economically important and rapidly developing market.

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 ...