Hokuren Distance Challenge Update

Japan's main early summer track series, the Hokuren Distance Challenge, is underway across Hokkaido. Following last month's special last chance edition for people to go for Oregon 2022 World Championships qualifying times, two regular meets have already happened this month.

At the July 2 Shibetsu Meet, Benard Koech (Kyudenko) won the day's biggest race, the men's 5000 m A-heat, in 13:26.03 by a fraction of a second over Muthoni Muiru (JR Higashi Nihon). The biggest surprise was World Championships 3000 mSC squad member Kosei Yamaguchi (Aisan Kogyo) outkicking lone Worlds 5000 m entrant Hyuga Endo (Sumitomo Kaijo) for top Japanese honors at 3rd overall in 13:33.45. Endo was 5th in 13:35.59, doing the race as a workout after winning the 3000 m in 7:52.50 where he beat another Worlds steepler, Ryoma Aoki (Honda) by 5 seconds. After missing the Tokyo Olympics 10000 m by a fraction of a second, Kazuki Tamura (Sumitomo Denko) came close to a full comeback from a long injury, 6 seconds off his best to win the 5000 m B-heat in 13:39.11.

2019 World University Games half marathon gold medalist Yuka Suzuki (Daiichi Seimei) had a great corporate debut, winning the women's 5000 m in a 4-second PB of 15:33.41 over Sayaka Sato (Sekisui Kagaku). Hellen Ekarare won the women's 1500 m A-heat easily in a PB 4:05.82 to lead a Toyota Jidoshokki sweep of the top 3 spots.

Koech was back at the July 6 Fukagawa Meet, soloing the men's 10000 m A-heat to win by 40 seconds in 27:12.72. Four other Japan-based Kenyans went under 28 minutes, Ayumu Kobayashi (NTT Nishi Nihon) the fastest Japanese man of the day in 28:08.06 for 6th. Dominic Langat (Konica Minolta) won the men's 5000 m A-heat in 13:34.60, fan favorite Keita Shitara (Hitachi Butsuryu) turning in a now-rare win in the B-heat in 13:57.71.

Natsuki Omori (Daihatsu) won the women's 10000 m in 32:47.72, with Tokyo Olympics marathoner Ayuko Suzuki (Japan Post) continuing her incremental comeback with a 32:52.04 for 2nd. Miki Hirai (Uniqlo) won the 5000 m A-heat just off her PB in 15:47.30, with Worlds team member Nozomi Tanaka (Toyota Jidoshokki) opting for 1st in the 3000 m in 8:42.66. In a sign of continued progress on Japan's borders re-opening, South Korean Yujin Kim was 8th in the 5000 m in 16:14.68 and teammate Somang Shin won the 800 m in a PB 2:04.46.

The next Hokuren Distance Challenge meet happens July 9 in Kitami. The series runs through July 16.

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