Skip to main content

Collegiate Record Holder Fuwa Withdraws from National XC Champs and Mixed Ekiden


10000 m collegiate record holder and all-time Japanese #2 at 30:45.21, 18-year-old Seira Fuwa (Takushoku Univ.) has withdrawn from plans to run this Sunday's National University Mixed Team Invitational Ekiden in Osaka and next weekend's National Cross Country Championships in Fukuoka. The Takushoku University women's team made the announcement on its official Twitter feed on Feb. 14.

At the Jan. 16 National Women's Ekiden Fuwa broke 5000 m national record holder Ririka Hironaka's course record for the 4.0 km Fourth Stage, running 12:29 and passing 13 people en route. Post-race she was excited about running the Mixed Ekiden, saying, "There aren't that many chances for men and women to run on the same team, and I'm really looking forward to running in a new ekiden!" 

But in the team's announcement it said, "Everything going forward is for one thing: winning the May 7 National Championships 10000 m and competing at Worlds!" The announcement also said Fuwa was not running the National Cross Country Championships, in which she had been entered. The National Championships 10000 m will be held May 7 at Tokyo's National Stadium. As one of only three Japanese women to currently have the Oregon World Championships 10000 m standard, a win at Nationals would guarantee Fuwa a place on the National Team. This appears to be her new priority.

source article:
translated by Brett Larner

Buy Me A Coffee
Labels:

Comments

RigaJags said…
Bummer,she likely would have won fairly easily (already did last year).

Smart choice to focus on the middle part of the year from her though.

I wonder if Miura will do something similar. I hope his training on longer distances won't affect his 3000 SC. I think he should really focus on that until the national and then world championship.
February 15, 2022 at 8:43 PM
RigaJags said…
I know it's not the most appropriate article to comment on this again but since I left the comment above there's an update in case there won't be an article previewing the race:

Miura appears on the starting list at the official webpage of the 10km senior who he won last year. The exciting part is that in addition to Matsueda (last year second) there will be Akira Aizawa (at least he is on the starting list) and Kosuke Ishida (who beat Miura 2-3 years ago in the u20 XC nationals).
Furthermore Keita Sato is listed in the senior race as well (he won the u20 last year) before going to Komazawa.
Add in Ayumu Yamamoto (with a great 20km corporate marathon), Tamaki Fujimoto, Ken Tansho among others and this weekend's race could be amazing.

I hope there will be a live streaming available somewhere.
February 21, 2022 at 10:31 PM
Post a Comment

Most-Read This Week

10000 m National Championships Preview

  Less than five months since the 2023 10000 m National Championships went down at the 2021 Olympic stadium in Tokyo, the 2024 edition happens Friday at Shizuoka's Ecopa Stadium, with NHK broadcasting it live starting at 19:25 local time. Doubling up on Nationals like this lets Japanese athletes double dip on placing points to try to get into the Paris Olympics on rankings. But between the number of people who've hit the 30:40.00 women's standard and 27:00.00 men's standard and the lopsided eight spots given away to top placers at World XC, there are only four women's spots and three men's available via rankings. Of those, three of the four women's spots and two of the three men's spots are currently occupied by top placers at December's 2023 Nationals, Ririka Hironaka , Haruka Kokai and Rino Goshima for women and Ren Tazawa and Tomoki Ota for men. The 2023 Nationals did get close to the standards, with Hironaka leading the top four women under
3 comments
Read more

Goshima and Kasai Win 10000 m National Titles, Maeda Breaks U20 Asian Record

Rino Goshima and Jun Kasai stepped up with PBs to win the 2024 National Championships 10000 m titles Friday at Shizuoka's Ecopa Stadium. In the women's race, Goshima, 4th in last December's 2023 National Championships 10000 m, went out front from the start with Kenyan teammate Judy Jepngetich pacing and 2023 3rd-placer Haruka Kokai in tow. Things were never on track to hit the 30:40.00 Paris Olympics standard, but except for a brief dip to 3:08 at 7000 m Goshima held steady at 3:05 to 3:06/km even as Kokai and Jepngetich fell off. With blood dripping from her left knee after getting spiked by Jepngetich, Goshima closed in 3:03 to take 5 seconds off her best from December's Nationals and win in 30:53.31, moving up to all-time Japanese #6. Jepngetich also PBd at 31:09.42 without counting in the standings, with Kokai 2nd in 31:10.53 and Kazuna Kanetomo 3rd in a PB 31:59.29. The runner-up last time, Yuka Takashima was last in 33:33.27. The men's race went out in a
1 comment
Read more

Chesang and Kipkoech Win Hot Gifu Half

Hot conditions held back fast times at the Gifu Seiryu Half Marathon Sunday, where Ugandan Stella Chesang and Kenya Hillary Kipkoech took the top spots over last year's winners Dolphine Nyaboke Omare and Amos Kurgat . In the women's race Chesang, Omare and Kenyan-born Bahraini Eunice Chebichii Chumba went out as a trio, Japan-based Hellen Ekarare with them initially but eventually dropping out. After a 15:39 opening 5 km Chumba started to slip off, and by 15 km Chesang was on her own. Chesang won in 1:07:59, solid given the conditions, with Omare 2nd in 1:08:31 and Chumba 3rd in 1:09:10. Rinka Hida was the first Japanese woman, 5th overall in 1:12:06 behind Australian Genevieve Gregson . A lead men's pack of 11 went through 5 km in 14:31, but by 10 km it was down to Kipkoech, Kurgat, , Timothy Kiplagat , Ugandan Stephen Kissa and Japan-based Kenyans Patrick Mathenge Wambui and Anthony Maina . At 15 km in 43:40 only Kurgat and Kipkoech were left, and over the last 5
1 comment
Read more