Skip to main content

Kiryu Delivers Japan's First-Ever Sub-10 for 100 m With 9.98 Win at National University Championships



The day Japan has been waiting for has finally arrived.

Riding a wave of success in Japanese men's sprinting that in the last year has seen 4x100 m medals at the Rio Olympics and London World Championships and six men clear 10.10, Yoshihide Kiryu (Toyo University) outran his London teammate Shuhei Tada (Kwansei Gakuin University) to become the first Japanese man ever to legally clear the 10-second barrier as he won the National University Championships 100 m final in 9.98 (+1.8 m/s) Saturday in Fukui.

After struggling with a sluggish start at the Taipei World University Games late last month Tada was back to his usual form, quick out of the blocks to open an early lead over Kiryu and the rest of the field. But over the second half Kiryu continued to build, passing Tada and dipping across the line to stop the clock at 9.99. The crowd erupted, but with the memory of Koji Ito's 10.00 national record, initially a 9.99 that was adjusted to 10.00 in the official results, the noise dimmed slightly as people waited for the official result to come up.

Then, with a 9.98 (+1.8 m/s) appearing nest to Kiryu's name, all the pent-up expectation of an entire nation exploded. A wave of sound, people jumping up and down and screaming, race officials falling over backward, Kiryu's coaching staff crying, and above it all, the sheer sound. Everybody knew this day was coming, that it was just a matter of one of the six, Kiryu, Tada, Abdul Hakim Sani Brown, Aska Cambridge, Ryota Yamagata or Shota Iizuka, getting it right. There was too much momentum, too much belief, for it not to happen.

And with the possible exception of Yamagata, there's nobody most of the public would have liked to see get there first more than Kiryu. In the last race of a university career that began with Toyo University spending $50,000 on an inclined track for him as an incoming frosh, today was his day. And there are surely more to come.

86th National University Track and Field Championships Men's 100 m Final (+1.8 m/s)
Fukui Sports Park Field, Fukui, 9/9/19
click here for complete results

1. Yoshihide Kiryu (Toyo Univ.) - 9.98 - NR
2. Shuhei Tada (Kwansei Gakuin Univ.) - 10.07 (MR)
3. Ippei Takeda (Chuo Univ.) - 10.31
4. Kenta Oshima (Nihon Univ.) - 10.32
5. Yusuke Tanaka (Nihon Wellness Univ.) - 10.36
6. Takuya Kawakami (Chuo Univ.) - 10.36
7. Yoshihiro Someya (Chuo Univ.) - 10.41
8. Takayuki Nishimura (Toyama Univ.) - 10.51

© 2017 Brett Larner, all rights reserved
video by Ekiden News
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Most-Read This Week

Federation Tells World Championships Marathoner Horibata To Go On Diet

http://hochi.yomiuri.co.jp/sports/etc/news/20110307-OHT1T00258.htm translated by Brett Larner Having made the 2011 World Championships marathon team by running a PB of 2:09:25 to come in 3rd overall and as the top Japanese finisher at the Mar. 6 Lake Biwa Mainichi Marathon, Hiroyuki Horibata (24, Team Asahi Kasei), talked to the media at Osaka Airport on Mar. 7. Following Sunday's race Rikuren director Keisuke Sawaki , 67, told Horibata, "Let's cut things down a bit until the World Championships," directing him to go on a diet. The 189 cm Horibata weighs 72 kg [~6'3", 160 lbs]. When he joined Team Asahi Kasei in 2005 at age 18 he weighed 65 kg, and this weight is still generally listed on his profile at races and in the media. "For some reason it never changes," he said with a grin. His coach Takeshi Soh , 58, commented, "If he was hungrier for glory his world would change completely," slapping the 'heavyweight division runner...
Post a Comment
Read more

Nagoya Asian Games Test Event Canceled After Insulation Falls From Venue Ceiling

A section of insulation material fell from the ceiling of Nagoya Kinjo Futo Arena, the official venue for squash competition at September's Nagoya Asian Games. There were no injuries, but the city suspended use of the arena until its safety could be guaranteed, resulting in the cancelation of the Asian Games squash test event which was scheduled to have begun on May 14. It is not yet clear whether the arena will be usable for the Asian Games as planned. According to city officials, arena staff found that the insulation material had fallen onto a work walkway 13 m above the ground on the night of May 11. The fallen material was 3.6 m long, 50 cm wide and 2.5 km thick, and was found to be waterlogged. The cause of the accident is unknown, but it is possible that it was caused by rainwater leaking in from the roof. The same insulation material is installed across the entire ceiling, and the city plans to check for the extent of the possible flooding. Asked whether the arena will be re...
Post a Comment
Read more

Everything You Need to Know About the 2026 Hakone Ekiden

The Hakone Ekiden is the world's biggest road race, 2 days of road relay action with Japan's 20 best university teams racing 10 half marathon-scale legs from central Tokyo to the mountains east of Mount Fuji and back. The level just keeps going higher and higher , hitting the point this year where there are teams with 10-runner averages of 13:33.10 for 5000 m, 27:55.98 for 10000 m, and 1:01:20 for the half marathon. It's never been better, and with great weather in the forecast it's safe to say this could be one of the best races in Hakone's 102-year history, especially on Day One. If you've seen it then you know NTV's live broadcast is the best sports broadcast in the world, with the pre-race show kicking off at 7:00 a.m. Japan time on the 2nd and 3rd and the race starting at 8:00 a.m. sharp. If you've got a VPN you should be able to watch it on TVer starting at 7:50 a.m. on the 2nd , and again at 7:50 a.m. on the 3rd . There's even a 2-hour high...
3 comments
Read more