In preparation for the Jan. 22 National Men's Ekiden in Hiroshima, on Jan. 5 representatives of the race organizers visited Itsukushima Shrine in Miyajima to pray for the athletes' safety. Yuji Kono, head of the Hiroshima Track and Field Association, and Atsushi Eguchi, an executive with the Chugoku Newspaper who serves as the race's director, brought a total of 63 tasuki sashes to be used in the race, including extras and those to be used for white sash starts. After having the tasuki exorcised, they prayed for a successful and safe event.
After pandemic-related cancelations the last two years, the race is scheduled to go ahead for the first time since 2020. "I'm nervous like this is the first time again," said Kono. "The ekiden is an event built on course side crowd support. I hope that the runners will have a lot of people cheering them on and that they will all finish safely."
Teams representing each of Japan's 47 prefectures will wear the tasuki on race day. The race begins in front of Hiroshima's Peace Memorial Park at noon, covering 7 legs and 48.0 km with a turnaround point in Hatsukaichi and a finish back at Peace Memorial Park.
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translated by Brett Larner
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