Skip to main content

MGC Race Olympic Marathon Trials Qualifier - Kengo Suzuki

Kengo Suzuki

age: 24
sponsor: Fujitsu
graduated from: Uwajima Higashi H.S., Kanagawa University

best time inside MGC window:
2:10:21, 19th, 2018 Tokyo Marathon

PB: 2:10:21, 19th, 2018 Tokyo Marathon

other PBs:
5000 m: 13:57.88 (2016) 10000 m: 28:30.16 (2016) half marathon: 1:01:36 (2017)

marathons inside MGC window (Aug. 1 2017 – April 30 2019)
13th, 2019 Hamburg Marathon, 2:11:36
DNS, 2019 Tokyo Marathon
19th, 2018 Tokyo Marathon, 2:10:21

other major results:
4th, 2018 Hakone Ekiden Second Stage (23.1 km), 1:07:26
3rd, 2017 Taipei Universiade Half Marathon, 1:06:56
1st, 2017 National University Half Marathon, 1:01:36 – CR
1st, 2017 Hakone Ekiden Second Stage (23.1 km), 1:07:17
3rd, 2016 Hakone Ekiden Qualifier 20 km Road Race, 58:43
3rd, 2016 National University Half Marathon, 1:03:08

Suzuki’s breakthrough to the top level of Japanese distance running came early in 2017 with a win on the Hakone Ekiden’s most competitive stage and two months later with a 1:01:36 to win the National University Half Marathon Championships. He followed up with a bronze medal at the 2017 World University Games and another stellar Hakone run before capping his university career with a 2:10:21 debut at last year’s Tokyo Marathon.

Since graduating and moving to the Fujitsu corporate team he has had his share of setbacks, including a DNS in Tokyo this year, but with two days until the MGC Race qualifying window Suzuki got it done at the Hamburg Marathon. With his 2:10:21 debut falling inside the qualifying window Suzuki needed to run 2:11:39 in Hamburg to hit the two-race 2:11:00 wildcard standard for MGC qualification. He ran 2:11:36. That last kilometer must have been pretty stressful.

From the way he ran his last two years of university Suzuki looks to have a lot of potential in the marathon. Whether he’ll be ready to take things up a level come Sept. 15 is a bit doubtful, which isn’t to say that he’s not preparing. On Aug. 2 JRN saw Suzuki out on the Olympic and MGC marathon course with teammate Kohei Ogino running exactly a year and a week out from the Olympic marathon. But at only age 24 he still has plenty of room to develop for Paris 2024 even if he misses out here.

Next profile: Kensuke Horio (Toyota).

© 2019 Brett Larner, all rights reserved

Buy Me A Coffee
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Most-Read This Week

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...
1 comment
Read more

Hakone Ekiden Qualifying Race Entry Roster Sizes Increased from 14 to 16

Hakone Ekiden organizers KGRR have announced details for the qualifying half marathon for next year's 103rd Hakone Ekiden. The Yosenkai qualifying race will be held Oct. 17 in Tachikawa, Tokyo. The combined times of the 10 fastest finishers from each participating team will be used for team scoring, with the 10 fastest teams going on the the main event next January and top-placing individuals from teams that do not qualify being names to the Kanto Region Student Alliance select team. One change from previous years is that the number of runners each school can enter has been increased from 14 to 16. Teams will still only be allowed to have from 10 to 12 athletes on the starting line, but the move gives coaches greater flexibility in making the final decision on their starting rosters. No changes have been made to the qualifying times of 34:00 for 10000 m or 1:13:00 for the half marathon, and the new earlier starting time of 8:30 a.m. introduced last year in an effort to mitigate ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Nomura and Odagiri Go 3-4 at Zevenheuvelenloop 15 km

2010 Zevenheuvelenloop 15 km Nijmegen, Netherlands, 11/21/10 Women click here for complete women's results 1. Genet Getaneh (Ethiopia) - 47:53 2. Florence Kiplagat (Kenya) - 48:07 3. Sayo Nomura (Meijo Univ.) - 49:43 4. Aki Odagiri (Meijo Univ.) - 51:37 5. Benita Willis (Australia) - 51:51 Men click here for complete men's results 1. Leonard Patrick Komon (Kenya) - 41:13 - WR 2. Abera Kuma (Ethiopia) - 42:01 3. Ayele Abshiro (Ethiopia) - 42:01 4. Abraham Kiplimo (Uganda) - 43:03 5. Berhanu Delale (Ethiopia) - 43:08 ----- 14. Kazuya Watanabe (Team Sanyo Tokushu Seiko) - 45:31
Post a Comment
Read more