Skip to main content

Kanto Region Qualifier for National University Men's Ekiden Canceled

Thank you all for your continued cooperation and support, and our sincere gratitude for your support of the Inter-University Athletics Union of Kanto (KGRR). The KGRR has been busily preparing for its upcoming season of events, but the development of the coronavirus crisis has forced a reevaluation of the schedule.

Given the number of incidents of cluster infections that have contributed to a rapid spread, if such an incident were to occur at the time of one of our events it would cause a significant strain upon the local medical care system. Additionally, the Apr. 7 national declaration of a state of emergency has been extended beyond its original ending date of May 6, restricting many member schools to having its athletes train only on their own on an extracurricular basis.

In such a situation in which athletes are unable to train adequately, we do not feel it is possible to stage competitions in which it is safe for them to compete. Needless to say, the health  and lives of the athletes is the KGRR's highest priority, and with that in mind it has made the following decisions regarding major events on the schedule this year. We thank you in advance for your understanding and cooperation.

June - National University Men's Ekiden Championships Kanto Region Qualifier - canceled
Alternative team selection method TBA.

July - Kanto Region University Student Abashiri Time Trials - canceled

Translator's note: This news follows the Kansai region's May 5 announcement of the cancelation of its qualifier for the National University Men's Ekiden. The Kanto region's cancelation is not susprising at all, but it's a bigger deal as Kanto schools regularly sweep the top ten at Nationals. The eight schools that already qualified for Nationals by placing in the top eight at last year's race all come from Kanto. Whether more join them, and whether the Nov. 3 event happens at all, remains to be seen. The cancelation of the Abashiri meet in July more or less confirms that the Hokuren Distance Challenge series of track time trial meets in Hokkaido won't happen either.

source article:
https://www.kgrr.org/event/2020/kgrr/race.pdf
translated by Brett Larner

Buy Me A Coffee
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Most-Read This Week

'CAS Clears Japan’s Olympic Silver Medallist Ikeda of Doping, Overturns Ban'

https://www.aljazeera.com/sports/2026/10/23/cas-clears-japans-olympic-silver-medallist-ikeda-of-doping-overturns-ban The AIU's missteps in this case cost Tokyo Olympics and Oregon World Championships 20 km race walk silver medalist Koki Ikeda , a Toyo University graduate who competes for the Asahi Kasei corporate team, the chance to represent Japan at a home soil World Championships last year. It is almost unheard of for an athlete to successfully fight a biological passport suspension as Ikeda did, making this a highly significant case. The CAS' press release about its decision stated: "The Panel stressed that the Athlete did not merely assert his position on the ABP abnormalities but adduced very extensive evidence in support of his explanations. In this highly complex case, the evidence brought during the CAS proceedings was far more abundant and specific than during the first instance proceedings with the WA Disciplinary Tribunal, implying the CAS Panel had further ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Meijo Back With Morinomiyako Ekiden CR for National University Title

The last big dynasty school in Japanese women's distance running with 7-straight wins at October's Morinomiyako Ekiden from 2017 to 2023 and 6-straight titles at the season-ending Mt. Fuji Women's Ekiden from 2018 to 2023, Meijo University came back from a 3rd-place finish last year to win the 44th Morinomiyako Ekiden again, leading almost start-to-finish to set a 2:02:21 CR for the 6-stage, 38.0 km course in Sendai. 12 second back in 2nd after the opening leg, collegiate 3000 mSC champ Nozomi Kondo put Meijo out front with a 12:36 CR for the 4.0 km Second Stage, and the rest of the team never looked back. The biggest threat to a Meijo win was on the 9.2 m Fifth Stage, where this year's collegiate 10000 m winner Sarah Wanjiru from last year's runner-up Daito Bunka University started 50 seconds back from Meijo 1st-year Mao Kimura . In taking the 10000 m title Wanjiru had outrun Kimura by over a minute, but today Kimura was a revelation, strong and smooth out fr...
1 comment
Read more

Morinomiyako Ekiden Preview

The university men's ekiden circuit is 100% dominated by schools from the Tokyo-area Kanto Region, but for women it's more geographically diverse, the last two big dynasty schools being the Tokai Region's Meijo University and the Kansai Region's Ritsumeikan University with Kanto's Daito Bunka University a perpetual close 2nd at both of the main races, Sunday's Morinomiyako Ekiden and December's Mt. Fuji Women's Ekiden . Last year Kanto's Josai University scored upset wins at both Morinomiyako and Mt. Fuji , to make it a rare Kanto sweep. At Morinomiyako DBU was 2nd yet again with Meijo 3rd and Tohoku region local Tohoku Fukushi University a surprise 4th to hold 2024 winner and top Kansai team Ritsumeikan back to 5th. At Mt. Fuji Tohoku Fukushi almost pulled off a shock win on the anchor stage before Josai came back on the final climb, bumping DBU down to 3rd and Meijo to 4th, with Ritsumeikan 5th there too. Fresh names at the top of the list a...
1 comment
Read more