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Toyo University Wins 69th Ogi Ekiden, Saku Chosei and Sendai Ikuei Take H.S. Titles


After cancelations in 2020 and 2021, the Ogi Ekiden in Akita returned Saturday for its 69th edition. A traditional race with a tough and hilly course, it is a standard midsummer event on the calendar for most of the country's top schools.

Toyo University won the 7-stage, 64.7 km university division in 3:16:54. Toyo in 3rd was 14 seconds behind leader Chuo University's A-team after the 13.4 km First Stage, dropping to 4th and 43 seconds down on new leader Aoyama Gakuin University by the end of the Fourth Stage. But on the 8.2 km Fifth Stage, Toyo's Hiroki Sugano ran the fastest time on his stage, 23:12, to put Toyo into 2nd. Sixth runner Naoya Kanehara moved up to within 5 seconds of AGU on his 9.9 km stage, leaving it to anchor Shu Yoshida to run them down and open a 31-second lead for the win. Yoshida was all smiles as he broke the tape at the end of his 10.1 km stage.

AGU ended up 2nd in 3:17:25. Chuo's B-team took 3rd in 3:17:50, beating Juntendo University by just 2 seconds.

In the 7-stage, 42.8 km high school boys' race, Nagano's Saku Chosei H.S. took the lead on the Third Stage with a solid run from Soma Nakahara. Fourth runner Riki Koike extended Saku Chosei's lead with a stage-best run, putting his last three teammates in position to run safely to the win in 2:25:32. Sendai's Sendai Ikuei H.S. and Kyoto's Rakunan H.S. were left to duel for 2nd, Sendai Ikuei getting it by 2 seconds in 2:27:45. Local Akita Kogyo H.S. was a DNF when its first runner Taiyo Narita was unable to finish his leg.

The 2021 national champion Sendai Ikuei girls pulled off what the boys couldn't, winning their 5-stage, 21.2 km race in 1:10:12 by 27 seconds over Kyoto's Ritsumeikan Uji H.S. Sendai Ikuei's B-team was good enough for 3rd in 1:10:43.

69th Ogi Ekiden

Akita, 25 June 2022

University Men - 7 stages, 64.7 km, 10 teams
Top Team Results
1. Toyo University - 3:16:54
2. Aoyama Gakuin University - 3:17:39
3. Chuo University B - 3:17:50
4. Juntendo University - 3:17:52
5. Chuo University A - 3:22:16
6. Tokai University - 3:22:23

Individual Stage Winners
First Stage (13.4 km) - Tomohiro Chimori (Chuo Univ. A) - 39:48
Second Stage (11.8 km) - Yudai Nakazawa (Chuo Univ. B) - 36:29
Third Stage (7.5 km) - Kaisei Nishikawa (Aoyama Gakuin Univ.) - 22:00
Fourth Stage (3.8 km) - Kosuke Aburaya (Juntendo Univ.) - 13:19
Fifth Stage (8.2 km) - Hiroki Sugano (Toyo Univ.) - 23:12
Sixth Stage (9.9 km) - Fumiya Horiuchi (Juntendo Univ.) - 30:05
Seventh Stage (10.1 km) - Shu Yoshida (Toyo Univ.) - 30:17

High School Boys - 7 stages, 42.8 km, 26 teams
Top Team Results
1. Saku Chosei H.S. - 2:25:32
2. Sendai Ikuei H.S. - 2:27:45
3. Rakunan H.S. - 2:27:48
4. Aomori Yamada H.S. A - 2:28:37
5. Omuta H.S. - 2:29:08
-----
DNF - Akita Kogyo H.S.

High School Girls - 5 stages, 21.2 km, 18 teams
Top Team Results
1. Sendai Ikuei H.S. A - 1:10:12
2. Ritsumeikan Uji H.S. - 1:10:39
3. Sendai Ikuei H.S. B - 1:10:43
4. Aomori Yamada H.S. A - 1:11:25
5. Kyoto Gaidai Nishi H.S. - 1:11:51

Open Men - 7 stages, 64.7 km, 29 teams
Top Team Results
1. Tendo Higashimurayama Ekiden A - 3:27:22
2. Tsuchizaki RC - 3:34:52
3. Nanyo Higashiokitama - 3:36:21

source article:
translated and edited by Brett Larner

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Rigajags said…
Has kosuke ishida had injury issues? DNS at the Hakone Ekiden after top performances at Izumo and All Japan.
Bad result at the XC Nationals and missing since then, i havent seen him at any meeting.
June 28, 2022 at 8:18 PM
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