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Fujitsu and Kurosaki Harima Win East Japan and Kyushu Region New Year Ekiden Qualifiers


The first two regional qualifiers for the Jan. 1 New Year Ekiden corporate men's national championships happened Nov. 3 in Saitama and Kyushu. At the East Japan Race in Saitama, 2021 New Year Ekiden winner Fujitsu outran 2022 champ Honda by 40 seconds for 1st. Honda started and finished strong with stages wins from its lead and anchor runners Hideto Kosode and Naoki Koyama, but Fujitsu had a solid lineup mid-race led by a stage record win on the Fourth Stage by Ken Yokote that gave it the lead it needed for the win.

Most of the big names qualified without any surprises. Local supermarket chain Sunbelx did surprise, spending much of the race as high as 3rd before finishing an excellent 5th overall. Down near the 12th-place cutoff for New Year qualification, Saitama Ika Daigaku Group had a nail-biter as it dueled with the Comodi Iida supermarket team, ND Software and Komori Corporation to stay in the ring for its second-ever qualification. Despite a sub-par run from #1 man Kenta Uchida it came through, beating the usually-strong Komori for 12th by 1:13.

In the Kyushu region, both of the main two powerhouses Asahi Kasei and Mitsubishi Juko struggled, finishing only 5th and 6th out of the eight qualifying teams. The ascendant Kurosaki Harima team dominated, sub-61 half marathoner Yusuke Tamura leading off with the first of the team's four stage wins and 2:06 marathoner Kyohei Hosoya making a quick turnaround from his 6th-place finish at the Chicago Marathon last month to win the Fifth Stage.

Down in the race for the final qualifying spot at 8th, Togami Denki easily held off Hiramatsu Byoin by over 6 minutes to make the cut. Qualification continues Nov. 13 with the Chugoku, Chubu, Kansai and Hokuriku regional qualifying race.

63rd East Japan Corporate Men's Ekiden

Kumagaya, Saitama, 3 Nov. 2022
31 teams, 7 stages, 76.9 km

Top Individual Stage Results
First Stage (11.6 km) - Hideto Kosode (Honda) - 34:27
Second Stage (8.0 km) - Benson Kiplangat (Subaru) - 21:17 - CR
Third Stage (16.5 km) - Akito Terui (Subaru) - 48:01
Fourth Stage (9.5 km) - Ken Yokote (Fujitsu) - 27:09 - CR
Fifth Stage (7.8 km) - Tetsu Yokoyama (Hitachi Butsuryu) - 22:25
Sixth Stage (10.6 km) - Yuya Yoshida (GMO) - 30:10
Seventh Stage (12.9 km) - Naoki Koyama (Honda) - 37:26 - CR

Top Team Results
top 12 teams qualify for New Year Ekiden
1. Fujitsu - 3:42:01
2. Honda - 3:42:41
3. Hitachi Butsuryu - 3:42:57
4. Yakult - 3:43:11
5. Sunbelx - 3:43:16
6. GMO - 3:43:56
7. Subaru - 3:45:07
8. Kao - 3:45:36
9. JR Higashi Nihon - 3:46:39
10. Konica Minolta - 3:47:09
11. Comodi Iida - 3:48:19
12. SID Group - 3:48:31
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13. Komori Corp. - 3:49:44
14. Press Kogyo - 3:50:49
15. SDF Academy - 3:52:10

59th Kyushu Corporate Men's Ekiden

Kitakyushu, Fukuoka, 3 Nov. 2022
19 teams, 7 stages, 80.2 km

Top Individual Stage Results
First Stage (12.9 km) - Yusuke Tamura (Kurosaki Harima) - 36:58
Second Stage (7.0 km) - Benard Koech (Kyudenko) - 18:40
Third Stage (10.9 km) - Keito Makise (Toyota Kyushu) / Takashi Ichida (Asahi Kasei) - 31:21
Fourth Stage (9.5 km) - Tomonobu Tamura (Kurosaki Harima) - 27:21
Fifth Stage (13.0 km) - Kyohei Hosoya (Kurosaki Harima) - 38:03
Sixth Stage (10.9 km) - Masami Nagakura (Kurosaki Harima) - 31:39
Seventh Stage (16.0 km) - Shohei Otsuka (Kyudenko) - 47:01

Top Team Results
top 8 teams qualify for New Year Ekiden
1. Kurosaki Harima - 3:52:29
2. Kyudenko - 3:54:03
3. Toyota Kyushu - 3:54:23
4. Yasukawa Denki - 3:55:49
5. Asahi Kasei - 3:55:53
6. Mitsubishi Juko - 3:56:48
OP - Corporate Select Team A - 3:57:37
7. Nishitetsu - 3:59:01
OP - Corporate Select Team B - 4:00:29
8. Togami Denki - 4:00:41
OP - Corporate Select Team C - 4:02:22
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9. Hiramatsu Byoin - 4:07:07
10. Hioki City Hall - 4:16:03

© 2022 Brett Larner, all rights reserved

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