Osaka International Women's Marathon Elite Field

The Osaka International Women's Marathon jumps into the World Athletics platinum label pool Jan. 29 with its 42nd edition. A-group pacing it set to go at 3:19~20/km, 2:19:57 to 2:20:39 pace, with organizers opting to switch back to female pacers after two years with men. They've pulled in a trio of recent 2:20-level women, Kenyan Maurine Chepkemoi and Ethiopians Haven Hailu Desse and Sisay Meseret Gola, to try to max out the chances that the top Japanese women will be able to ride that in to something close to sub-2:20, and have tweaked the course a bit to do the same.

Yuka Ando (Wacoal) is the only Japanese woman in the race to have gone sub-2:22 in her career, but in terms of times in the last three years she's one of three coming in with a 2:22, alongside last year's runner-up Mao Uesugi (Starts) and Sayaka Sato (Sekisui Kagaku). Tokyo Olympian Honami Maeda (Tenmaya) is in the mix too with a 2:23:30 in Osaka two years ago and some good half marathons last year, if she can make it to the starting line.

Interesting debuts include sub-70 half marathoner Sakiho Tsutsui (Yamada Holdings), steepler Yumi Yoshikawa (Uniqlo), Yuna Daito (Tenmaya), and the long-awaited first stab from 2009 World University Games 10000 m gold medalist Kasumi Nishihara (Sysmex). Hidden away deep in the field without a recent qualifying time but given special permission from the JAAF to run is collegiate record holder Sairi Maeda (Daihatsu), running her first marathon since 2019. 60+ world record holder Mariko Yugeta (Saitama T&F Assoc.) is also back for the race where she ran her 2:52:13 WR two years ago.

Things are starting to count down toward the qualification deadline for the MGC Race, Japan's Paris Olympics marathon trials next October. Sato, Ando and Uesugi have all already qualified and can just focus on time. Likewise for mid-fielders Haruka Yamaguchi (AC Kita) and Reia Iwade (Denso). The main question will be whether Honami Maeda, winner of the last MGC Race, can finally get a qualifying mark in. To do that, she and others will need to finish in the first three Japanese places and sub-2:28, in the next three Japanese places and sub-2:27, or any domestic place beyond that and sub-2:24. Chiharu Ikeda (Hitachi) has the lowest bar to make the cut through the two-race 2:28:00 average option, her 2:26:50 in Nagoya last spring meaning she only needs to run 2:29:10 or better whatever place she finishes.

Fuji TV will broadcast the race live starting at noon on Jan. 29. Check back closer to race date for more info on following live.

42nd Osaka International Women's Marathon

Elite Field Highlights

Osaka, 29 Jan. 2023

complete field listing

times listed are best in last 3 years except where noted

Maurine Chepkemoi (Kenya) - 2:20:18 (Amsterdam 2021)

Haven Hailu Desse (Ethiopia) - 2:20:19 (Amsterdam 2021)

Sisay Meseret Gola (Ethiopia) - 2:20:50 (Seville 2022)

Sayaka Sato (Sekisui Kagaku) - 2:22:13 (Berlin 2022)

Yuka Ando (Wacoal) - 2:22:22 (Nagoya 2022)

Mao Uesugi (Starts) - 2:22:29 (Osaka Int'l 2022)

Honami Maeda (Tenmaya) - 2:23:30 (Osaka Int'l 2021) - scratch due to injury

Sairi Maeda (Daihatsu) - 2:25:25 (Nagoya 2019)

Haruka Yamaguchi (AC Kita) - 2:26:35 (Osaka Int'l 2020)

Chiharu Ikeda (Hitachi) - 2:26:50 (Nagoya 2022)

Risper Gesabwa (Mexico) - 2:26:55 (Valencia 2021)

Reia Iwade (Denso) - 2:27:03 (Nagoya 2022)

Munkhzaya Bayartsogt (Mongolia) - 2:28:03 (Osaka Int'l 2020)

Shiho Kaneshige (GRlab Yamaguchi) - 2:28:51 (Osaka Int'l 2020)

Alice Wright (Great Britain) - 2:29:08 (Houston 2022)

Anna Matsuda (Mitsui Sumitomo Kaijo) - 2:29:52 (Osaka Int'l 2021)

Yui Okada (Otsuka Seiyaku) - 2:30:03 (Tokyo 2022)

Nana Sato (Starts) - 2:30:24 (Nagoya 2022)

Misato Horie (Sysmex) - 2:32:10 (Osaka 2022)

Madoka Nakano (Iwatani Sangyo) - 2:32:56 (Osaka Int'l 2021) - scratch due to injury

Mariko Yugeta (Saitama T&F Assoc.) - 2:52:13 (Osaka Int'l 2021)

Debut/Do-Over

Sakiho Tsutsui (Yamada Holdings) - 1:09:14 (Nat'l Corp. Half 2020)

Yumi Yoshikawa (Uniqlo) - 1:10:07 (Sanyo Half 2021)

Yuna Daito (Tenmaya) - 1:10:12 (Nat'l Corp. Half 2022)

Kotomi Tsubokura (Wacoal) - 1:11:02 (Sanyo Half 2021)

Honoka Tanaike (Otsuka Seiyaku) - 1:11:13 (Nat'l Corp. Half 2022)

Kasumi Nishihara (Sysmex) - 1:52:27 (Osaka 30 km 2022)

19-Yr-Old Munakata Breaks Miura's U20 NR to Win Ageo City Half Marathon

The Ageo City Half Marathon is always big, the main race that the coaches of Hakone Ekiden-bound university men's teams use for firming up their entry rosters for the big show. That makes what's basically an idyllic small town race into one of the world's great road races, with depth unmatched anywhere. One of the top-tier people on the start list at 1:02:07, Kodai Miyaoka (Hosei Univ.) took the race out fast, but the entire pack was keying off the fastest man in the race, Reishi Yoshida (Chuo Gakuin Univ.), 1:00:31. Yoshida reeled Miyaoka in before 5 km and kept things steady in the low-1:01 range, wearing down the lead group to around 10 including his CGU teammate Taisei Ichikawa , a quartet from Izumo and National University Ekiden runner-up Komazawa University , 2 runners from local Daito Bunka University , 2:07:54 marathoner Atsumi Ashiwa (Honda), and Australian Ed Goddard . Right after 15 km Komazawa went into action, Yudai Kiyama , Hibiki Murakami and Haru Tanin

Ageo City Half Marathon Preview and Streaming

This weekend's big race is the Ageo City Half Marathon , the next stop on the collegiate men's circuit. Most of the universities bound for the Jan. 2-3 Hakone Ekiden use Ageo to thin down the list of contenders for their final Hakone rosters, and with JRN's development program that sends the first two Japanese collegiate finishers in Ageo to the United Airlines NYC Half every year a lot of coaches put in some of their A-listers too. That gives Ageo legendary depth and fast front-end speed, with a 1:00:47 course record last year from Kenyan corporate leaguer Paul Kuira (JR Higashi Nihon) and the top 26 all clearing 63 minutes. Since a lot of programs just enter everybody on their rosters you never really know who on the entry list is actually going to show up, but if even a quarter of the people at the top end of this year's list run it'll be a great race, even if conditions are looking likely to be a bit warmer than ideal. Chuo Gakuin University 's Reishi Yoshi

10000 m NR Attempt In the Works Saturday at Hachioji Long Distance - Streaming and Preview

There are a bunch of other time trial meets this weekend and next, but Saturday's Hachioji Long Distance is the last big meet for Japanese men, 8 heats of Wavelight-paced 10000 m finely graded from target times of 28:50 down to 26:59 for the fastest heat. Heat 6 at 17:55 local time is effectively the B-race, with 35 Japan-based Kenyans targeting 27:10 at the front end, and in a lot of cases a spot on their teams at the New Year Ekiden national championship on Jan. 1. Corporate teams are only allowed to field one non-Japanese athlete in the New Year Ekiden, and only on its shortest stage, and getting to that has a big impact on African athletes' contracts and renewal prospects. Toyota Boshoku , Yasukawa Denki , Chugoku Denryoku , Aisan Kogyo , JR Higashi Nihon , Subaru and 2024 national champion Toyota are all fielding two Kenyans, and Aichi Seiko three. For people like Toyota's Felix Korir and Samuel Kibathi , getting as close to the 27:10 target time as they can and

japan running news

Search This Blog