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MGC Race Olympic Marathon Trials Qualifier - Ryo Kiname

Ryo Kiname

age: 28
sponsor: MHPS
graduated from: Keiho H.S.

best time inside MGC window:
2:08:08, 7th, 2018 Tokyo Marathon

PB: 2:08:08, 7th, 2018 Tokyo Marathon

other PBs:
5000 m: 13:40.62 (2012) 10000 m: 28:18.52 (2011) half marathon: 1:02:22 (2012)

marathons inside MGC window (Aug. 1 2017 – April 30 2019)
26th, 2019 Tokyo Marathon, 2:17:19
DNF, 2018 Chicago Marathon
7th, 2018 Tokyo Marathon, 2:08:08 – PB

other major results:
25th, 2019 Shibetsu Half Marathon, 1:06:50
9th, 2019 New Year Ekiden Fifth Stage (12.1 km), 36:50
3rd, 2017 Beppu-Oita Marathon, 2:10:30
5th, 2016 Kumamoto Kosa 10-Miler, 46:47
1st, 2016 Hokkaido Marathon, 2:13:16
8th, 2014 Beppu-Oita Marathon, 2:12:46

Kiname is another of the handful of men in the field who didn’t go to university, going straight to the strong MHPS team after high school. He had a good arc to his early marathon career, 2:12:46 in Beppu-Oita in 2014, a 2:13:16 win at the Hokkaido Marathon in 2016, and a 2:10:30 back in Beppu again in 2017. Behind teammate Hiroto Inoue’s 2:06:54 Kiname had a breakthrough at the 2018 Tokyo Marathon, finishing hard to try to squeeze under 2:08 but just missing with a 2:08:08 for 7th.

Since then, though, he’s had injury troubles and been unable to get back to the same kind of form. After a DNF in Chicago last fall he ran only 2:17:19 in Tokyo this year. In his only notable race since this then, the July 21 Shibetsu Half Marathon, he was 25th in 1:06:50. By qualifying time he’s ranked 6th in the field, but while it’s not likely we’ll see him DNS or DNF Kiname looks at this point like the runner on the starting line who’ll be farthest from 100%.

Next profile: Taku Fujimoto (Toyota).

© 2019 Brett Larner, all rights reserved

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