Skip to main content

Juntendo Wins 2nd-Straight National Mixed Team University Ekiden


The 2nd annual National Mixed Team University Ekiden took place Sunday the 20th in Osaka on a six-stage, 20 km course around Nagai Park. Counting two Hakone Ekiden runners in its lineup, Juntendo University finished in the top spot again in 1:01:19, 34 seconds faster than its winning time last year. Chuo University was 2nd in 1:01:30, with Kansai University 3rd in 1:01:50.

Juntendo Hakone runner Kazuki Ishii was 5th on the 3.0 km opening leg, just 6 seconds behind leader Kazuto Iizawa (Tokai Univ.). Second runner Shion Ono ran the fastest time on her leg to put Juntendo into 1st. Having played a key role in Juntendo's 2nd-place finish at Hakone in January where he was 3rd on the competitive Third Stage, 3rd-year Tatsuya Iyoda won the 5 km Third Stage for the second year in a row, running a strong 14:18 to add a big chunk to Juntendo's lead. Anchor Mao Kogure was almost caught by Chuo's Ayuka Kazama, but with 600 m to go she kicked hard to bring Juntendo in to the win.

"This is the only chance to run on an ekiden team with both men and women," Iyoda said. "I hope that winning at this ekiden will give everyone at our school a little extra motivation." Juntendo head coach Shunsuke Nagato commented, "Having gotten a taste of the win here today, I hope that it will inspire them to keep pursuing the win."

2nd National Mixed Team University Ekiden

Nagai Park, Osaka, 20 Feb. 2022
23 teams, 6 stages, 20.0 km

Top Individual Stage Performances
First Stage (3.0 km, men) - Kazuto Iizawa (Tokai Univ.) - 8:12 - CR
Second Stage (2.0 km, women) - Shion Ono (Juntendo Univ.) - 6:15
Third Stage (5.0 km, men) - Tatsuya Iyoda (Juntendo Univ.) - 14:18
Fourth Stage (3.0 km, women) - Risa Yamazaki (Nittai Univ.) - 9:29 - CR
Fifth Stage (2.0 km, men) - Yasuhiro Katsuki (Toyo Univ.) - 5:21 - CR
Sixth Stage (5.0 km, women) - Rinka Hida (Ritsumeikan Univ.) - 16:31 - CR

Top Team Results
1. Juntendo University - 1:01:19 - CR
2. Chuo University - 1:01:30 (CR)
3. Kansai University - 1:01:50 (CR)
4. Nittai University - 1:01:58
5. Ritsumeikan University - 1:02:03
6. Toyo University - 1:02:10
7. Takushoku University - 1:02:14
8. Tsukuba University - 1:02:54
9. Josai University - 1:03:04
10. Kansai Region Select Team - 1:04:05

source articles:
translated and edited by Brett Larner

Buy Me A Coffee

Comments

Most-Read This Week

World Championships Medalist Racewalking Coach Mizuho Sakai Recognized With Highest Coaching Honor

The 2023 Mizuno Sports Mentor Awards recognizing excellence in coaching were held Apr. 23 in Tokyo. Toyo University assistant coach and race walking coach Mizuho Sakai was given a gold award, the program's highest honor, and expressed her thanks and joy in a speech at the award ceremony. The coach of 2023 Budapest World Championships men's 35 km race walk bronze medalist Masatora Kawano , Sakai said, "This is an incredible honor and I'm truly grateful. As a child I wanted to be in the sporting world and I've spent my life in that world. My end goal was always to play a supporting role for other athletes, so I'm honored to be recognized in this way." Sakai's husband Toshiyuki Sakai , head coach of Toyo's three-time Hakone Ekiden champion team, attended the awards gala with her and was also introduced to the audience. After bowing he took a seat in front of her and watched with warmth as she received recognition for her outstanding work. The Mizun

Hirabayashi Runs PB at Shanghai Half, WR Holder Nakata Dominates Fuji Five Lakes - Weekend Road Roundup

Returning to the roads after his 2:06:18 win at February's Osaka Marathon, Kiyoto Hirabayashi (Koku Gakuin University) took 5th at Sunday's Shanghai Half Marathon in a PB 1:01:23, just under a minute behind winner Roncer Kipkorir Konga (Kenya) who clocked a CR 1:00:29. After inexplicably running the equivalent of a sub-59 half marathon to win the Hakone Ekiden's Third Stage, Aoi Ota (Aoyama Gakuin Univ.) was back to running performances consistent with his other PBs with a 1:02:30 for 8th. His AGU teammate Kyosuke Hiramatsu was 10th in 1:04:00. Women's winner Magdalena Shauri (Tanzania) also set a new CR in 1:09:57. Aoyama Gakuin runners took the top four spots in the men's half marathon at the Aomori Sakura Marathon , with Hakone alternate Kosei Shiraishi getting the win in 1:04:32 and B-team members Shunto Hamakawa and Kei Kitamura 2nd and 3rd in 1:04:45 and 1:04:48. Club runners took the other division titles, Hina Shinozaki winning the women's half

The Ivy League at the Izumo Ekiden in Review

Last week I was contacted by Will Geiken , who I'd met years ago when he was a part of the Ivy League Select Team at the Izumo Ekiden . He was looking for historical results from Izumo and lists of past team members, and I was able to put together a pretty much complete history, only missing the alternates from 1998 to 2010 and a little shaky on the reverse transliterations of some of the names from katakana back into the Western alphabet for the same years. Feel free to send corrections or additions to alternate lists. It's interesting to go back and see some names that went on to be familiar, to see the people who made an impact like Princeton's Paul Morrison , Cornell's Max King , Stanford's Brendan Gregg in one of the years the team opened up beyond the Ivy League, Cornell's Ben de Haan , Princeton's Matt McDonald , and Harvard's Hugo Milner last year, and some of the people who struggled with the format. 1998 Team: 15th of 21 overall, 2:14:10 (43