Kawauchi's 2018 Race Results

A year of highs and lows for Kawauchi. More off than on following his stab at an ultra over 70 km in May but pulling his running back together in late November and December to close to the kind of strength he showed in the first four months of the year after hitting rock bottom in October. Will his self-styled "pro" move in April, quitting his job and the approach that has taken him this far, be successful? If there's one truth in life it's that there are no right decisions, only different outcomes. Time will tell what it holds in store for the soon to be former Civil Servant Runner.

Jan. 1: Marshfield New Year's Day Marathon, U.S.A.: 2:18:59 - 1st - CR
Jan. 14: Okukuma Road Race Half Marathon, Kumamoto - 1:03:28 - 7th
Jan. 21: Yashio Isshu Ekiden, Saitama: 1:01:03 - 1st - ran entire 20.0 km ekiden solo and beat all 103 teams of 6 runners each
Jan. 28: Okumusashi Ekiden First Stage (9.9 km), Saitama - 29:41 - 6th
Feb. 4: Saitama Ekiden Third Stage (12.1 km), Saitama - 36:54 - 4th
Feb. 11: Izumo Kunibiki Half Marathon, Shimane - cancelled due to heavy snow
Feb. 18: Kitakyushu Marathon, Fukuoka - 2:11:46 - 1st - CR
Feb. 25: Fukaya City Half Marathon, Saitama - 1:04:26 - 1st
Mar. 4: Kanaguri Hai Tamana Half Marathon, Kumamoto - 1:04:49 - 12th
Mar. 11: Yoshinogawa Riverside Half Marathon, Tokushima - 1:05:50 - 1st - CR
Mar. 18: Wan Jin Shi Marathon, Taiwan - 2:14:12 - 1st
Mar. 24: Heisei Kokusai University Time Trials, Saitama
5000 m Heat 4: 14:53.95 - 1st
5000 m Heat 6: 14:36.58 - 2nd
5000 m Heat 8: 14:37.78 - 8th
Mar. 25: Kuki Half Marathon, Saitama - 1:10:03 - 2nd - ran dressed in panda costume
Apr. 1: Satte Sakura 10-Miler, Saitama - 49:17 - 1st
Apr. 16: Boston Marathon, U.S.A. - 2:15:58 - 1st
Apr. 22: Gifu Seiryu Half Marathon, Gifu - 1:04:35 - 14th
Apr. 28: Kawauchi no Sato Kaeru Half Marathon, Fukushima - 1:05:56 - 1st
May 4: Kasukabe Otako Half Marathon, Saitama - 1:05:45 - 2nd
May 5: Toyohiragawa Half Marathon, Hokkaido - 1:06:39 - 1st
May 13: Sendai International Half Marathon, Miyagi - 1:03:41 - 7th
May 20: Yatsugatake Nobeyama Kogen 71 km Ultramarathon, Nagano - 4:41:55 - 1st - CR
May 27: Kinshuko Half Marathon, Iwate - 1:07:49 - 1st
June 2: Stockholm Marathon, Sweden - 2:22:57 - 4th
June 17: Okinoshima 50 km Ultramarathon, Shimane - 2:52:55 - 1st
July 1: Gold Coast Marathon, Australia - 2:14:51 - 9th
July 29: Kushiro Shitsugen 30 km, Hokkaido - 1:34:34 - 1st
Aug. 19: Nemuro Seaside Half Marathon, Hokkaido - 1:06:39 - 1st
Aug. 26: New Caledonia International Marathon, New Caledonia - 2:18:18 - 1st
Sept. 2: Wakkanai Heiwa Marathon, Hokkaido - 2:24:55 - 2nd
Sept. 23: Ichinoseki International Half Marathon, Iwate: 1:07:31 - 7th
Oct. 7: Bank of America Chicago Marathon, U.S.A. - 2:16:26 - 19th
Oct. 14: Namerikawa Half Marathon, Toyama - 1:05:18 - 1st
Oct. 21: Takashimadaira Road Race 20 km, Tokyo - 1:00:48 - 2nd
Oct. 28: Huawei Venice Marathon, Italy - 2:27:43 - 7th
Nov. 3: Nasu Shiobara Half Marathon, Tochigi - 1:05:03 - 1st
Nov. 18: Ageo City Half Marathon, Saitama - 1:02:49 - 14th
Nov. 24: Hasuda Road Race 3 km, Saitama - 8:40 - 1st
Dec. 2: Fukuoka International Marathon, Fukuoka - 2:12:03 - 10th
Dec. 16: Hofu Yomiuri Marathon, Yamaguchi - 2:11:29 - 1st

Past years' results:
2017 　・　2016　・　2015　・　2014　・　2013　・　2012

photo c/o Huawei Venice Marathon

Nagoya Women's Marathon Preview and Streaming (updated)

Japan's winter marathon season of 6 major races in 7-straight weekends wraps up Sunday with the world's largest women-only marathon, the Nagoya Women's Marathon . The weather is looking pretty good, 6˚ at the start rising to 10˚ by the finish and sunny skies, but a moderate 7 m/s NW wind means a headwind finish that might impact the potential for some fast times. Official streaming kicks off at 9:00 a.m. local time. Live results will be here . Sheila Chepkirui won last year in 2:20:40, breaking away from Sayaka Sato and Eunice Chebichii Chumba at 30 km and hanging on for the win. Sato negative split a 2:20:59 PB for 2nd, Chumba fading to 3rd in 2:21:36. All 3 are back this time, but they have pretty serious competition from Aynalem Desta , 2:17:37 in Amsterdam last fall, and Selly Chepyego Kaptich , 2:20:03 in Barcelona 2023. And of course, Japanese NR holder Honami Maeda . Maeda ran 2:18:59 at the Osaka International Women's Marathon in 2024 to make the Paris Oly...

Chepkirui Over Sato Again to Win 2nd-Straight Nagoya Women's Marathon, Chen Breaks Malaysian NR (updated)

This year's Nagoya Women's Marathon felt like a changing of the guard, with some the bigger domestic names over the last few years fading early and a lot of newer faces stepping up with quality debuts or second marathons. The front group was set to be paced for 2:20 flat with the 2nd group at 2:23:30 to hit the auto-qualifying time for the 2027 MGC Race, Japan's L.A. Olympics marathon trials race in Nagoya. Up front things went out OK, but after a 33:10 split at 10 km Ayuko Suzuki , 2:21:22 here 2 years ago, lost touch, ultimately finishing 23rd in 2:33:28. Windy conditions started to play with pacers' ability to keep things steady and the pace slowed majorly over the next 10 km, but even with a 34:05 second 10 km there were big-name casualties. 2024 Nagoya winner Yuka Ando was next to drop, ending up 17th in 2:30:32. NR holder Honami Maeda was next, followed quickly by Bahraini Kenyan Eunice Chumba and debuting Wakana Kabasawa . Maeda faded to 21st in 2:31:21, whil...

How it Happened

Ancient History I went to Wesleyan University, where the legend of four-time Boston Marathon champ and Wes alum Bill Rodgers hung heavy over the cross-country team. Inspired by Koichi Morishita and Young-Cho Hwang’s duel at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics I ran my first marathon in 1993, qualifying for Boston ’94 where Bill was kind enough to sign a star-struck 20-year-old me’s bib number at the expo. Three years later I moved to Japan for grad school, and through a long string of coincidences I came across a teenaged kid named Yuki Kawauchi down at my neighborhood track. I never imagined he’d become what he is, but right from the start there was just something different about him. After his 2:08:37 breakthrough at the 2011 Tokyo Marathon he called me up and asked me to help him get into races abroad. He’d finished 3rd on the brutal downhill Sixth Stage at the Hakone Ekiden, and given how he’d run the hills in the last 6 km at Tokyo ’11 I thought he’d do well at Boston or New York. “I...

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