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Nagano and Kasumigaura Marathons Return

Japan's two major April marathons returned Sunday for the first time since pre-pandemic, both smaller than usual but a welcome step forward even as other races this summer and beyond continue to cancel.

The Nagano Marathon saw an exciting men's race with local amateur Junichi Ushiyama surging hard with 5 km to go to break Akihiro Kaneko and Yuya Yamashita and win in a PB 2:14:42. Kaneko and Yamashita, who run for rival northern Tokyo supermarket chains Comodi Iida and Sunbelx, were head-to-head almost to the end before Kaneko broke free, taking 2nd in 2:15:22 to Yamashita's 2:15:26. The top nine men all went sub-2:20.

Yamashita's teammate Akane Sekino led solo in the women's race, running 2:41:20 to win by almost three minutes over corporate leaguer Kasumi Yoshida of the Aichi Denki team, 2nd in 2:44:19. Tokyo-based club runner Asami Morino was 3rd in 2:44:35 with the top five women all sub-2:50.

At the Kasumigaura Marathon, Kotaro Motonaga, a 4th-year at Teikyo University who hasn't made its starting lineup for the Hakone Ekiden in its first three seasons, won his debut at age 21 in 2:17:06. 47-year-old club runner Mai Fujisawa won the women's race in 2:43:57, her third-straight Kasumigaura title and the fastest of her eight times running it.

Kasumigaura also has one of Japan's top 10 milers, the site of the women's national record. 19-year-old Honoka Kageyama of Josai Kokusai University wasn't near that but still took the women's title in 59:08. Shunsuke Shikama led a Juntendo University sweep of the top three, winning in 47:55 with teammates Yuma Nishizawa and Masaya Uchida 2nd and 3rd in 48:05 and 48:09. Mayumi Nagai turned in one of the day's most impressive runs, winning the women's 5 km in 20:43 at age 59.

photo c/o Junichi Ushiyama
text © 2022 Brett Larner, all rights reserved

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