Skip to main content

Barmasai and Negasa Win Muenster Marathon, Kinoshita and Sakamoto Make Podium

Excellent conditions and decent fields said course records might be in the works, but while the results fell short of that level the women's race was the deepest in the Volksbank Muenster Marathon's 18-year history.

Ethiopians Chaltu Negasa and Chaltu Chawo and Kenyans Cythina Kosgei, Rebby Koech and Sheila Rono took it out at CR pace with Japan's Yoshiko Sakamoto, running with support from JRN, hanging on for the first 5 km before dropping off. By 15 km the debuting Kosgei and last year's winner Rono had fallen off, leaving Koech to tackle the Ethiopian pair.

The pair took turns trying to break away from the Kenyan, and by halfway they had a 30-second lead, 1:14:15 to 1:14:45. At 30 km they were still on CR, but despite staying together until near the end they didn't quite have the record in them, Negasa breaking away after 40 km for the win in 2:30:59. Chawo staggered in in 2:31:09, almost unable to stand an hour later at the award ceremony.

Koech paid for the early pace and was run down by Kosgei who took 3rd in 2:32:50. 2nd in Muenster in 2016 and 4th in 2017, Sakamoto was on PB pace through 32 km and moved as high as 5th. But from behind her Japan's Yumiko Kinoshita, who had started conservatively with a mostly South American 2nd pack, ran a two-minute negative split to overtake Sakamoto at 39 km, then Koech in the final kilometer to finish 4th in 2:35:45, 14 seconds up on Koech. Sakamoto ended up 6th in 2:37:42, the fastest of her three times in Muenster but lowest placing. Like Chawo, post-race Kinoshita was in a world of hurt and had trouble standing at the award ceremony. Sakamoto clearing 2:38 meant that for the first time in Muenster history the podium finishers all went under 2:40.


The men's race was never on CR pace, but from the early going it was on high-2:10 to low-2:11 pace and pretty well stayed there. Kenyan James Barmasai was at the front of the pack behind the pacers the entire way, the competition dropping away to just countrymen Edwin Kirwa and Mark Kangogo by 30 km. From there it was all Barmasai, not so much breaking away as holding on to what he had as he opened a lead of over a minute on Kirwa and almost three on Kangogo by race's end. His final time of 2:11:40 was still one of the better in event history, Kirwa next in 2:12:58 and Kangogo 3rd in 2:14:38.

18th Volksbank Muenster Marathon

Muenster Germany, 9/8/19
complete results

Women
1. Chaltu Negasa (Ethiopia) - 2:30:59
2. Chaltu Chawo (Ethiopia) - 2:31:09
3. Cynthia Kosgei (Kenya) - 2:32:50
4. Yumiko Kinoshita (Japan) - 2:36:45
5. Rebby Koech (Kenya) - 2:36:59
6. Yoshiko Sakamoto (Japan) - 2:37:42

Men
1. James Barmasai (Kenya) - 2:11:40
2. Edwin Kirwa (Kenya) - 2:12:58
3. Mark Kangogo (Kenya) - 2:14:38
4. Charles Maina (Kenya) - 2:16:02
5. Dereje Girma (Ethiopia) - 2:17:01
6. Elias Sansar (Germany) - 2:24:13

text and photos © 2019 Brett Larner, all rights reserved

Buy Me A Coffee
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Most-Read This Week

National University Championships Entry Lists and Streaming

The 95th National University Track and Field Championships run Friday through Monday at Nissan Stadium in Yokohama. The complete meet schedule and live results are here . The 10000 m races were already held separately earlier this season. Streaming starts at 9:00 a.m. Saturday Japan time, with separate field event channels and Day 2 and 3 streaming here . Top entries in each event with best performance in the qualifying window: Men 100 m Shoma Yamamoto (Hiroshima Univ.) - 10.04 Fukuto Komuro (Chuo Univ.) - 10.07 Naoki Nishioka (Tsukuba Univ.) - 10.09 Riku Oishi (Toyo Univ.) - 10.13 Kaito Kuroki (Chuo Univ.) - 10.14 Ryunosuke Mizuno (Waseda Univ.) - 10.14 Yugo Haitamataira (Juntendo Univ.) - 10.17 Shun Miyashita (Daito Bunka Univ.) - 10.19 200 m Akira Hayashi (Keio Univ.) - 20.36 Tomoru Funaki (Daito Bunka Univ.) - 20.39 Oma Asai (Tsukuba Univ.) - 20.47 Reishin Yamamoto (Toyo Univ.) - 20.49 Shingo Suzuki (Tokai Univ.) - 20.54 Haruto Nakamura (Fukuoka Univ.) - 20.55 400 m Shinya Hayashi...
Post a Comment
Read more

Yuasa and Niiya Win Hokkaido Marathon, 6 Qualify for Olympic Trials

  Six more people picked up qualifying spots for next year's MGC Race at yesterday's Hokkaido Marathon in Sapporo, guaranteeing themselves places at Japan's 2028 Los Angeles Olympics marathon trials. In the men's race, Hibiki Yoshida tried to break away from the massive lead group at 30 km, opening a 25-second lead between there and 35 km before getting cut down by the chase trio of Jin Yuasa , Ken Tansho and Masato Arao . All three stayed together until the very end, Yuasa showing the same kind of closing speed he had in winning 2025 Nobeoka Nishi Nippon Marathon and pulling away to win in 2:10:46. The debuting Tansho was next in 2:10:55, with Arao, 6th at last year's Sydney Marathon in an excellent 2:07:42, 3rd here in 2:10:59. By clearing 2:12:00 all three picked up MGC qualifying spots, freeing them up to go overseas next spring. Continuing a great season, Soka University 's Shoki Yamaguchi was 4th in 2:11:47, missing out on trials qualification but bea...
1 comment
Read more

Monterey Welcomes Student-Athletes from Sister City Nanao, Japan

a press release by the Monterey-Nanao Cross Country Exchange Project photos here Fourteen student-athletes from Nanao High School in Ishikawa Prefecture, Japan, recently completed a weeklong visit to the Monterey Peninsula as part of the Monterey–Nanao Cross Country Exchange Project , bringing together young people from the two Sister Cities through running, education, environmental stewardship, cultural exchange, and friendship. The seven boys and seven girls from Nanao were paired with 14 members of the Monterey High School cross country team and stayed in their homes throughout the visit. The week marked the first half of a reciprocal exchange that will continue when the Monterey students travel to Nanao later this year. The visitors received their first introduction to Monterey shortly after arriving at Monterey High School, walking with their hosts to Sister City Park and gathering for photographs beside the sign honoring Nanao — a fitting beginning for a week devoted to bringin...
Post a Comment
Read more