Skip to main content

Updates on Retirements, Team Transfers, and New Recruits

The Japanese fiscal and academic years run April through March, so most changes to teams' lineups happen then. With changes to regulations over team transfers after a national government investigation of potential anti-trust violations by the National Corporate Federation there's no shortage of transfers between teams. A quick look at some of the changes to the top corporate teams this year:

Women

Shiseido
retiring - Naruha Sato, 25 - 10000 m 31:52.43 
transfer out - Wakana Kabasawa, 24 - 5000 m 15:24.79

Sekisui Kagaku
new recruit - Yuma Yamamoto, 22 - 3000 m 8:52.19, 5000 m 15:16.71
new recruit - Akari Matsumoto, 18 - 3000 m 9:11.96
new recruit - Yuna Arai, 22 - 10000 m 32:11.08

Japan Post
new recruit - Kokone Sugimori, 18 - 3000 m 9:10.01, 5000 m 15:34.54
new recruit - Kae Gyu, 22 - 3000 m 9:14.29

Edion
new recruit - Kana Mizumoto, 18 - 3000 m 9:05.03

Daihatsu
new recruit - Aiko Hosoya, 18 - 3000 m 9:13.09
new recruit - Marin Nishizawa, 18 - 3000 m 9:14.24

Toyota Jidoshokki
new recruit - Riho Yoshida, 18 - 3000 m 9:13.06
transfer out - Nozomi Tanaka, 23 - 3000 m 8:40.84, 5000 m 14:59.93
transfer out - Yume Goto, 23 - 3000 m 8:49.65
transfer out - Momoka Kawaguchi, 24 - 10000 m 31:57.81

Panasonic
new recruit - Janet Nyiva, 18 - 3000 m 8:47.89, 5000 m 15:03.34

Daiichi Seimei
retiring - Hanae Tanaka, 33 - marathon 2:26:19
new recruit - Rinka Hida, 22 - half marathon 1:10:10

Kyudenko
transfer out - Winnie Jerotich, 23 - 3000 m 8:57.86, 5000 m 15:14.84

Uniqlo
transfer in - Yume Goto, 23 - 3000 m 8:49.65
transfer in - Momoka Kawaguchi, 24 - 10000 m 31:57.81

Men

Honda
transfer out - Jackson Kavesa, 21 - 10000 m 27:38.50
transfer out - Yuta Shitara, 31 - half marathon 1:00:17, marathon 2:06:11
new recruit - Vincent Yegon, 22 - 5000 m 13:15.15, 10000 m 27:24.42
new recruit - Ken Tansho, 22 - 5000 m 13:46.17, 10000 m 28:01.24

Fujitsu
retiring - Hirooki Arai, 34 - Rio de Janeiro Olympics 50 km RW bronze medalist
transfer out - Takamasa Kitagawa, 26 - Eugene World U20 Championships 4x400 m silver medalist
new recruit - Tatsuya Iyoda, 22 - 10000 m 28:06.26, half marathon 1:02:11
new recruit - Daiki Ozawa, 22 - 5000 m 13:43.81, 10000 m 28:20.67

Toyota
retiring - Chihiro Miyawaki, 31 - 10000 m 27:41.57, half marathon 1:00:53
transfer out - Alex Cherono, 22 - 5000 m 13:25.28
transfer in - Masashi Nonaka, 27 - 5000 m 13:35.94, half marathon 1:00:48

GMO
transfer out - Gideon Rono, 20 - 5000 m 13:16.51, 10000 m 27:11.03
transfer out - Tadashi Isshiki, 28 - half marathon 1:01:50, marathon 2:07:39
transfer out - Shohei Kurata, 30 - half marathon 1:02:08, marathon 2:08:44
transfer out - Ryo Hashimoto, 29 - half marathon 1:01:56, marathon 2:09:12
new recruit - Philip Mulwa, 21 - 5000 m 13:29.42, 10000 m 27:35.29
new recruit - Hironori Kishimoto, 22 - 5000 m 13:37.96, 10000 m 28:23.71
new recruit - Yudai Shimazu, 23 - 10000 m 28:34.40, half marathon 1:02:45
transfer in - Chihiro Ono, 23 - 5000 m 13:42.81, 10000 m 28:23.68

SGH
new recruit - Emmanuel Kipchichir, 19 - 5000 m 13:24.77
new recruit - Kotaro Kondo, 22 - 5000 m 13:34.88, 10000 m 28:10.50
new recruit - Takuma Takemura, 22 - half marathon 1:02:42
new recruit - Yuito Nakamura, 22 - 10000 m 28:29.43, half marathon 1:02:52

Subaru
transfer out - Andrew Lorot, 25 - 5000 m 13:26.40, 10000 m 27:33.21, half marathon 59:54

Toyota Boshoku
retiring - Junpei Kanisawa, 27 - half marathon 1:02:37
new recruit - Yuma Nishizawa, 22 - half marathon 1:02:35

JR Higashi Nihon
retiring - Natsuki Terada, 31 - half marathon 1:02:37, marathon 2:08:03
new recruit - Yuta Nakayama, 22 - 10000 m 28:07.33
new recruit - Shungo Yokota, 22 - marathon 2:07:47

Toyota Kyushu
transfer out - Kento Otsu, 31 - half marathon 1:01:56, marathon 2:08:15
retiring - Taishi Sakamoto, 27 - half marathon 1:01:54
retiring - Shoya Okuno, 29 - half marathon 1:02:26, marathon 2:09:28
new recruit - Kei Takase, 22 - half marathon 1:02:49

Logisteed (formerly Hitachi Butsuryu)
retiring - Shota Hattori, 31 - 5000 m 13:37.64, half marathon 1:01:25
retiring - Mitsunori Asaoka, 30 - 5000 m 13:38.05, 10000 m 27:59.72
transferring out - Wataru Tochigi, 27 - 10000 m 28:00.49, half marathon 1:01:21
transferring out - Kenta Koshikawa, 25 - half marathon 1:01:18
transferring out - Sho Nagato, 26 - 10000 m 28:07.32, half marathon 1:02:37
transferring out - Takumu Une, 24 - half marathon 1:02:42
new recruit - Tamaki Fujimoto, 22 - 5000 m 13:32.58, 10000 m 28:18.52, half marathon 1:02:20
new recruit - Masaya Yamatani, 22 - 5000 m 13:36.77, 10000 m 28:11.94
new recruit - Shunpei Tomita, 22 - 5000 m 13:41.74, half marathon 1:02:10
new recruit - Shunsuke Shikama, 22 - 10000 m 28:36.03

Kurosaki Harima
new recruit - Sota Fukutani, 22 - half marathon 1:02:58

Sunbelx
transfer out - Daisuke Momozawa, 30 - 10000 m 28:09.07, half marathon 1:01:50
transfer in - Kento Otsu, 31 - half marathon 1:01:56, marathon 2:08:15
new recruit - Yoshinori Shimazaki, 23 - 10000 m 28:27.98

Asahi Kasei
retiring - Ryoichi Matsuo, 31 - marathon 2:11:43
transfer out - Chihiro Ono, 23 - 5000 m 13:42.81, 10000 m 28:23.68
new recruit - Sonata Nagashima, 18 - 1500 m 3:44.87, 5000 m 13:37.46
new recruit - Ryuto Igawa, 22 - 10000 m 27:59.74, half marathon 1:02:39
new recruit - Taiga Nakanishi, 22 - 5000 m 13:38.45, 10000 m 28:03.26, half marathon 1:01:22
new recruit - Jun Kasai, 22 - 10000 m 28:21.72

© 2023 Brett Larner, all rights reserved

Buy Me A Coffee
Labels:

Comments

Stefan said…
Sekisui Kagaku have recruited very well. Earlier in the year, I thought Shiseido may very well start an Exiden dynasty because of their depth of talent and runner development. However given the line up changes, I'm going to temper my thoughts. I'm still of the mind that Shiseido are the team to beat, but Sekisui will push them all the way and it will be a very interesting Exiden season especially if all the top runners are fully fit coming into it.

Thank you for the run down of the line up changes.
April 5, 2023 at 11:15 AM
Post a Comment

Most-Read This Week

Hakone Champ AGU Hits 50 km a Day in Spring Break Training Camp

Having scored its 3rd-straight Hakone Ekiden win this past January, Aoyama Gakuin University spent the Golden Week spring holidays training on the Myoko Plateau in Niigata from May 2-6. Along with the champion men's ekiden team, the first 2 members of AGU's new women's long distance team Nodoka Ashida and Kairi Ikeno , and AGU alumni and 2026 New Year Ekiden champion GMO team members Yuya Yoshida and Asahi Kuroda also took part in the training camp. Depending on the day's training schedule, mileage at the camp was over 50 km a day. AGU men's captain Kaito Nakamura confidently said, "This Golden Week training camp is where we lay the foundations for our 4th-straight Hakone title." A lot of people spend Golden Week on vacation, but the AGU ekiden team spent their time working hard on Myoko's rolling land amid the sprouting leaves of spring. On the 2nd day of the camp, May 3, team members woke up at 5:00 a.m. to do their warmup. The team assembled a...
2 comments
Read more

Everything You Need to Know About the 2026 Hakone Ekiden

The Hakone Ekiden is the world's biggest road race, 2 days of road relay action with Japan's 20 best university teams racing 10 half marathon-scale legs from central Tokyo to the mountains east of Mount Fuji and back. The level just keeps going higher and higher , hitting the point this year where there are teams with 10-runner averages of 13:33.10 for 5000 m, 27:55.98 for 10000 m, and 1:01:20 for the half marathon. It's never been better, and with great weather in the forecast it's safe to say this could be one of the best races in Hakone's 102-year history, especially on Day One. If you've seen it then you know NTV's live broadcast is the best sports broadcast in the world, with the pre-race show kicking off at 7:00 a.m. Japan time on the 2nd and 3rd and the race starting at 8:00 a.m. sharp. If you've got a VPN you should be able to watch it on TVer starting at 7:50 a.m. on the 2nd , and again at 7:50 a.m. on the 3rd . There's even a 2-hour high...
3 comments
Read more

Shikama and Njeri Win Sendai International Half Marathon

Shunsuke Shikama (Logisteed) and Tabitha Njeri Kamau (Mitsui Sumitomo Kaijo) won the Sendai International Half Marathon Sunday in Sendai, Shikama in 1:01:31 and Njeri in 1:09:20. Mizuki Nishimura (Tenmaya) was the top Japanese woman at 2nd overall. The men's race went through 5 km in 14:34 and 10 km in 29:22. Shikama ran alongside top competition including Shoki Yamaguchi (Soka Univ.), who has been running well in half marathons this season, and Tokyo World Championships marathon team member Naoki Koyama (Honda). On a course with many small ups and downs, Shikama attacked on a downhill just after 15 km, quickly breaking free of the lead group of 7. 13 seconds up by 20 km, Shikama covered the last 1.0975 km in 3:06 to seal his first Sendai title. A graduate of Juntendo University , Shikama is in his 4th season with Logisteed. At the 2024 National Corporate Half Marathon he ran 1:00:41, and at last year's East Japan Corporate Ekiden he won the Third Stage. In his marathon d...
Post a Comment
Read more