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Last Chance for Tokyo 2020? - Lake Biwa Mainichi Marathon Elite Field



With just under three weeks to go the organizers of the Mar. 10 Lake Biwa Mainichi Marathon's 74th running have finally released the elite field. For Japanese men it's the last chance - almost - to qualify for September's MGC Race 2020 Olympic marathon trials, the last domestic race with up to six spots up for grabs for anyone under 2:11:00 or 2:10:00 and more for anyone else under 2:08:30 or averaging under 2:11:00 between Lake Biwa and another marathon in the last year and a half. The window on that last two-race option runs through April 30th so there will still be a few chances left, but realistically for most of the men at Lake Biwa this is it, all or nothing for a home soil Olympic team.

There's a good international field of twelve African-born runners of eight nationalities at the 2:06 to 2:09 level to help pull the Japanese men to hit those times. Last year's winner Macharia Ndirangu (Kenya/Aichi Seiko) is back, ranked 6th in a field led by 2:06 men Deribe Robi (Ethiopia) and Ernest Ngeno (Kenya) and by 2012 London Olympics gold medalist Stephen Kiprotich (Uganda), still rolling strong at the 2:07 level. The Japan-based Ezekiel Cheboitibin (Kenya/Sunbelx) can be easily overlooked with only a 2:12:17, but having run a 1:29:06 course record at last Sunday's hilly Ome 30 km after training with the Tokyo-bound Bedan Karoki (Kenya/DeNA) Cheboitibin could be the dark horse of the day. Debuting Japan-based Ethiopian Abiyot Abinet (Yachiyo Kogyo) could also surprise.

The top two-ranked Japanese men in the field, Kenji Yamamoto (Mazda) and Yuki Kawauchi (Saitama Pref. Gov't) have already earned their places at the MGC Race. Yamamoto, 2:08:48 in Tokyo last year, is particularly exciting, having run the National Corporate Half earlier this month as a controlled effort marathon pace run and come away with a 1:02:34. Excluding the two of them, the first three Japanese men across the line are in if they clear 2:11:00. The next three also make it if under 2:10:00. A few have easier time hurdles to clear thanks to the two-race option and good previous performances. Anyone who misses out will have the consolation prize of a possible spot on the 2019 Doha World Championships team.

But it's worrying that four men who ran PBs in the 2:10 to 2:12 range at the Feb. 3 Beppu-Oita Mainichi Marathon, Shogo Kanezane (Chugoku Denryoku), Takumi Kiyotani (Chugoku Denryoku), Masato Kikuchi (Konica Minolta) and Hiroshi Ichida (Asahi Kasei) are lining up again to try to squeeze in a qualifier domestically before the deadline. There's more than a hint of desperation, especially from three-time defending New Year Ekiden corporate national champion Asahi Kasei, which has yet to qualify a single athlete.

Apart from Ichida and Dairokuno Asahi Kasei has one decent possibility in Rio Olympian Satoru Sasaki. Sasaki's Rio teammate Suehiro Ishikawa (Honda) was already Japan's oldest-ever male Olympic marathoner, but he's still at it and will be trying again to at least make the trials. Minato Oishi (Toyota), a training partner of Fukuoka winner Yuma Hattori, was brilliant earlier this month at the National Corporate Half as the top Japanese man in 1:01:33 and should be a serious contender, as should his teammate Tsubasa Hayakawa who finished a second behind him in the half. Likewise for 2:08:09 man Kohei Matsumura (MHPS), a training partner of 2:06:54 runner Hiroto Inoue and fresh off a 1:02:09 PB behind Oishi at the corporate half after several years of injury setbacks. #1 among the Japanese first-timers is Yuta Takahashi (Otsuka Seiyaku), 1:01:52 in Marugame this month and coached by former national record holder Takayuki Inubushi.

As always, NHK will be broadcasting the entire race live nationwide and commercial-free. Recently they've added livestreaming options to their other race coverages, so check back closer to race date for more info on following the action live.

74th Lake Biwa Mainichi Marathon Elite Field Highlights

Otsu, Shiga, 3/10/19
complete field listing
times listed are best in last 3 years except where noted

 Deribe Robi (Ethiopia) - 2:06:38 (3rd, Valencia 2017)
Ernest Ngeno (Kenya) - 2:06:41 (3rd, Paris 2018)
Stephen Kiprotich (Uganda) - 2:07:31 (2nd, Hamburg 2017)
Benson Seurei (Bahrain) - 2:07:37 (10th, Valencia 2018)
Augustino Paulo Sulle (Tanzania) - 2:07:46 (2nd, Toronto Waterfront 2018)
Macharia Ndirangu (Kenya/Aichi Seiko) - 2:07:53 (1st, Lake Biwa 2018)
Stephen Mokoka (South Africa) - 2:08:31 (1st, Cape Town 2018)
Asefa Tefera (Ethiopia) - 2:08:34 (7th, Frankfurt 2018)
Kenji Yamamoto (Japan/Mazda) - 2:08:48 (9th, Tokyo 2018)
Yuki Kawauchi (Japan/Saitama Pref. Gov't) - 2:09:01 (2nd, Gold Coast 2016)
Alphonce Felix Simbu (Tanzania) - 2:09:10 (5th, London 2017)
Hiroyuki Yamamoto (Japan/Konica Minolta) - 2:09:12 (10th, Tokyo 2017)
Michael Githae (Kenya/Suzuki Hamamatsu AC) - 2:09:21 (4th, Lake Biwa 2018)
Amanuel Mesel (Eritrea) - 2:09:22 (5th, Fukuoka Int'l 2017)
Suehiro Ishikawa (Japan/Honda) - 2:09:25 (4th, Lake Biwa 2016)
Salah-Eddine Bounasr (Morocco) - 2:09:29 (1st, Vienna 2018)
Satoru Sasaki (Japan/Asahi Kasei) - 2:10:10 (4th, Lake Biwa 2017)
Shogo Kanezane (Japan/Chugoku Denryoku) - 2:10:19 (7th, Beppu-Oita 2019)
Minato Oishi (Japan/Toyota) - 2:10:39 (4th, Beppu-Oita 2017)
Chiharu Takada (Japan/JR Higashi Nihon) - 2:10:43 (4th, Gold Coast 2016)
Kohei Matsumura (Japan/MHPS) - 2:11:04 (5th, Lake Biwa 2017)
Takumi Kiyotani (Japan/Chugoku Denryoku) - 2:11:24 (12th, Beppu-Oita 2019)
Masato Kikuchi (Japan/Konica Minolta) - 2:11:53 (14th, Beppu-Oita 2019)
Yared Asmerom (Eritrea/Seisa Doto Univ.) - 2:11:57 (9th, Fukuoka Int'l 2016)
Ser-Od Bat-Ochir (Mongolia/NTN) - 2:12:12 (2nd, Hofu 2018)
Shota Yamazaki (Japan/Yakult) - 2:12:15 (1st, Nobeoka 2018)
Ezekiel Cheboitibin (Kenya/Sunbelx) - 2:12:17 (3rd, Hofu 2018)
Takumi Honda (Japan/Asahi Kasei) - 2:12:18 (2nd, Nobeoka 2018)
Koji Gokaya (Japan/JR Higashi Nihon) - 2:12:23 (11th, Fukuoka Int'l 2018)
Hiroshi Ichida (Japan/Asahi Kasei) - 2:12:23 (15th, Beppu-Oita 2019)
Ayumu Sato (Japan/MHPS) - 2:12:37 (10th, Beppu-Oita 2018)
Soji Ikeda (Japan/Yakult) - 2:13:27 (10th, Lake Biwa 2016)
Tsubasa Hayakawa (Japan/Toyota) - 2:14:05 (6th, Hokkaido 2018)
Shota Hattori (Japan/Honda) - 2:14:11 (15th, Beppu-Oita 2018)
Yoshiki Otsuka (Japan/Aichi Seiko) - 2:14:32 (17th, Beppu-Oita 2018)
Thomas Do Canto (Australia) - 2:14:59 (19th, Fukuoka Int'l 2017)
Byambajav Tsevennravdan (Mongolia) - 2:16:14 (3rd, Dongguan Asian Champs 2017)
Brad Milosevic (Australia) - 2:16:24 (9th, Hamburg 2017)
Julian Spence (Australia) - 2:16:39 (19th, Berlin 2018)
Reece Edwards (Australia) - 2:16:43 (21st, Chicago 2018)
Thomas Frazer (Ireland) - 2:17:34 (27th, Lake Biwa 2017)
Nick Earl (Great Britain) - 2:18:56 (4th, Melbourne 2018)
Bradley Threlfall (Australia) - 2:19:53 (25th, Berlin 2018)

Debut
Abiyot Abinet (Ethiopia/Yachiyo Kogyo) - 1:01:21 (1st, Nat'l Corporate Half 2017)
Yuta Takahashi (Japan/Otsuka Seiyaku) - 1:01:52 (9th, Marugame Half 2019)
Yusuke Ogura (Japan/Yakult) - 1:02:03 (11th, Marugame Half 2015)
Masato Terauchi (Japan/Aichi Seiko) - 1:02:23 (5th, Osaka Half 2018)
Koki Takada (Japan/Sumitomo Denko) - 1:02:29 (13th, Marugame Half 2018)

© 2019 Brett Larner, all rights reserved

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Andrew Armiger said…
Always one of my favorite races to watch, much added intrigue this year!
February 24, 2019 at 11:53 AM
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