Skip to main content

Tanaka, Ino and Yoshimatsu Take on Harmony Geneva Marathon

Three elite-level Japanese athletes will race the 14th edition of Switzerland's Harmony Geneva Marathon Sunday with support from JRN. In a women's field headed by Ethiopian Alemitu Lema and debuting Kenyan Ruth Waithera, 2017 Osaka Marathon runner-up Mitsuko Ino seeks to rebound from a poor performance at March's Skechers Performance Los Angeles Marathon with a bettering of her 2:34:39 breakthrough in Osaka.

2016 Osaka runner-up Hisae Yoshimatsu will be aiming to follow her 3rd place finish at last September's Volksbank Muenster Marathon and 2nd-place finish at December's Hofu Yomiuri Marathon with another top three placing, ideally cracking 2:35 on Geneva's slightly net downhill course.

The men's field features four men with recent sub-2:10 times led by 2:08 man Joseph Aperumoi of Kenya. Seeded 6th on recent time, club runner and Tokai University alumnus Asuka Tanaka makes his international marathon debut after a surprise 2:10:13 PB in Tokyo in February. "I'm less focused on time and more on just being as competitive as I can," Tanaka said.

JRN will be on-hand throughout the weekend to provide support and cover the race live. Follow @GeneveMarathon for more coverage.


14th Harmony Geneva Marathon Elite Field

Geneva, Switzerland, 5/6/18
times listed are best within last three years except where noted

Women
Alemitu Lema  (Ethiopia) - 2:31:36 (Mersin 2017)
Berha Lemelem (Ethiopia) - 2:33:10 (Seville 2017)
Ametework Fekadu  (Ethiopia) - 2:34:25 (Lodz 2017)
Mitsuko Ino (Japan) - 2:34:39 (Osaka 2017)
Hisae Yoshimatsu (Japan) - 2:35:46 (Hofu 2015)
Ruth Waithera (Kenya) - debut - 1:10:15 (Milan Half 2018)

Men
Joseph Aperumoi (Kenya) - 2:08:26 (Amsterdam 2017)
Wilfred Murgor (Kenya) - 2:09:37 (Seoul 2015)
Abraraw Misganaw (Ethiopia) - 2:09:47 (Lubljana 2015)
Wycliff Biwott (Kenya) - 2:09:55 (Zagreb 2017)
William Yegon (Kenya) - 2:10:11 (Hefei 2015)
Asuka Tanaka (Japan) - 2:10:13 (Tokyo 2018)
Alfred Kering (Kenya) - 2:10:27 (Lisbon 2016)
Bernard Cheruiyot (Kenya) - 2:10:42 (Gyeongju 2017)
Abdelkabir Saji (Morocco) - 2:13:44 (Marrakech 2018)
Tadese Tolesa (Ethiopia) - 2:16:04 (Metz 2014)
James Kiplagat (Kenya) - 2:19:06 (Nairobi 2017)
Tamiru Sahelu (Ethiopia) - debut - 29:00 (Addis Abeba 10 km 2017)

© 2018 Brett Larner, all rights reserved
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Most-Read This Week

Kobe Marathon Elite Field

Sunday's Kobe Marathon has announced its elite fields, finally. Japanese athletes have a shot at qualifying for next fall's MGC Race, the official trials race for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics, if they go sub-2:27 for the first Japanese woman across the line or sub-2:09 for the first 3 Japanese men to do it. There aren't a lot of contenders to pull it off. On the women's side, Kaede Hagitani , Ayaka Shimoyamada and Kotomi Tsubokura all ran 2:31-32 PBs in the spring and will need to step it up a couple of notches to get there. 2:23 Kenyan Antonina Kwambai is perfectly positioned to help. On the men's side, Keijiro Mogi is closest with a 2:09:06 at last year's Beppu-Oita Mainichi Marathon, Hiroto Kanamori his closest domestic competition with a 2:10:01 PB in Osaka in February. The international trio of last year's winner Barnaba Kipkoech , Elisha Rotich and Goitom Kifle all have recent 2:06-7 times and should help set it up for someone to get there, wh...
1 comment
Read more

Kenyan Graduate Student Athlete Posts Job Hunt for Ekiden Team on Twitter

A Kenyan runner who had tried to help lead his team to the Hakone Ekiden has taken an unusual approach to finding a post-graduation sponsor. Last week Patrick Kamau posted his job hunt on his Twitter account , saying, "I am looking for a club team or a corporate team where I can run in ekidens. I would be happy to run for any team that gave me a chance. I would be grateful for any opportunity and take it on with a positive attitude!" Kamau was 5th at the Hakone Ekiden Yosenkai qualifying race half marathon in 1:01:10 last year during his 4th year at Jobu University . But despite his efforts, Jobu never qualified for Hakone during his 4 years there. He is currently working on a graduate degree while looking for "a team that will let me continue my competitive career." Fans responded to Kamau's job search posting, saying, "I hope it works out for you!" "Good luck comes to those who work hard" and "Kamau is going to graduate school? Given...
Post a Comment
Read more

Hofu Yomiuri Marathon Elite Field (updated)

Another big race on the MGC qualifying calendar has posted its elite fields, the Dec. 6 Hofu Yomiuri Marathon . It looks like a good race for the single MGC spot up for women under 2:27, and the 6 spots for men sub-2:09. Yuka Ando is the favorite in the women's race with a 2:21:18 in Nagoya 2 years ago, with her only real competition coming from Ayumi Morita , who broke 2:27 in Hofu last year but missed qualifying by not being the first Japanese woman across the line. CR holder Workneh Derese is back after his 2:06:58 win last year, leading Kenyan veteran Bedan Karoki and 4 Japanese men with a solid chance at sub-2:09, Tatsuya Maruyama , Ryoma Takeuchi , Shuho Dairokuno and Kento Nishi . Takeuchi set his 2:08:20 PB at Gold Coast in July, and Dairokuno is fresh off a great run at the final Kyushu Corporate Ekiden. Masatoshi Sakata , Yota Ifuku , Madoka Tanihara and Daiji Kawai have both come close to sub-2:09 in recent races and could factor in. 57th Hofu Yomiuri Marathon Elite...
1 comment
Read more