Skip to main content

'22 World Silver Medalist Jumpei Yamaguchi Misses WR by 33 Seconds at Lake Saroma 100 km



After dropping out of a shot at the world record at last month's Shibamata 100 km, 2022 World Championships silver medalist Jumpei Yamaguchi (Eldoreso) was back to give it another go at Sunday's Lake Saroma 100 km Ultramarathon in Hokkaido. Running into a 1~2 m/s headwind for much of the race, Yamaguchi started fast, splitting 35:55 at 10 km, just on track for sub-6 hours. '22 gold medalist and Shibamata winner Haruki Okayama (Comodi Iida), two-time world champ Hideaki Yamauchi (Hamamatsu Hotniks), 2017 Lake Saroma winner Tatsuya Itagaki (Tokinosumika) and others went with him, but by 30 km it was down to just Yamauchi, Itagaki and Okayama in 1:47:48.

After hitting the marathon point in 2:31:39, still sub-6 pace, Okayama fell off and ultimately dropped out. Itagaki stayed with Yamaguchi until 60 km in 3:37:09 before letting go. As the temperature hit 20˚ under cloudless skies and climbed on to 22˚ Yamaguchi's 10 km splits slowed into the 37-minute range, and the month-old pending WR of 6:05:35 set by Lithuanian Alexsandr Sorokin began to slip away. With 10 km to go Yamaguchi needed to run 36:13 to surpass Sorokin before he was officially in the books. Rallying to close in 36:46, Yamaguchi came up just short as he broke the tape in 6:06:08.

That took over 3 minutes off the Japanese national record and still officially standing WR of 6:09:14 by Nao Kazami (Aisan Kogyo) and moved Yamaguchi up to all-time #2. "This was my first time winning a 100 km, but I'm really disappointed to have missed the world record," he said through tears post-race. "The course was hillier than I expected and it got hot, so when I look back on this I'll have some painful memories. I want to say thank you to everyone at my sponsor Eldoreso who believed in me and was there for me when I was injured and feeling down. Now I know the world record is in range"

Yamaguchi's 10 km splits and projected finish time:

10 km: 35:56 (5:59:20)
20 km: 36:24 (6:01:40)
30 km: 35:29 (5:59:23)
40 km: 35:52 (5:59:13)
50 km: 36:32 (6:00:26)
60 km: 36:57 (6:01:57)
70 km: 38:00 (6:04:31)
80 km: 37:05 (6:05:19)
90 km: 37:07 (6:05:58)
100 km: 36:46 (6:06:08)

Given the hotter conditions than what Sorokin faced, the headwind and the fast start, there's a case to be made that this was the greatest road 100 km performance ever.




In the women's race, favorite Miho Nakata (Chiba T&F Assoc.), 6th at the 2022 World Championships, held an early lead and held it through 50 km in 3:32:57 before getting passed by 2018 Lake Saroma winner Mai Fujisawa (Excel AC). But Fujisawa couldn't hold the lead either, as Mikiko Ota (KSS Runners) came from almost 6 minutes behind at 80 km to pass her for 1st just before 90 km. From there to the end it was all Ota, 1st in 7:28:42 by more than 11 minutes over Fujisawa.

Ota's 10 km splits and projected finish time:

10 km: 44:17 (7:22:50)
20 km: 44:20 (7:23:05)
30 km: 44:16 (7:22:57)
40 km: 44:38 (7:23:48)
50 km: 44:53 (7:24:48)
60 km: 45:14 (7:26:03)
70 km: 44:49 (7:26:21)
80 km: 44:24 (7:26:04)
90 km: 46:26 (7:28:06)
100 km: 45:25 (7:28:42)

38th Lake Saroma 100 km and 50 km Ultramarathon

Hokkaido, 25 June 2023

Men
1. Jumpei Yamaguchi (Eldoreso) - 6:06:08 - NR
2. Tatsuya Inagaki (Tokinosumika) - 6:22:11
3. Toru Somiya (Mitsugi Club) - 6:36:13
4. Hideaki Yamauchi (Hamamatsu Hotniks) - 6:51:20

Women
1. Mikiko Ota (KSS Runners) - 7:28:42
2. Mai Fujisawa (Excel AC) - 7:39:44
3. Haruna Takano (unattached) - 7:52:51
4. Miho Nakata (Chiba T&F Assoc.) - 8:01:45
5. Sonoka Nakayama (Uchida Chiryoin) - 8:14:03

© 2023 Brett Larner, all rights reserved

Buy Me A Coffee



Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Most-Read This Week

Australian YouTuber Handed Lifetime Ban by Ageo City Half Marathon After Running 1:06 with Another Runner's Bib (updated)

After discussion with their race's chief JAAF referee, on Nov. 27 the organizers of the Ageo City Half Marathon handed down a lifetime ban from their event against 36-year-old Australian Matt Inglis Fox  for running the Nov. 15 race wearing the bib number of another JAAF-registered runner. The incident came to light after Fox posted on his personal Instagram account that he had run a PB of 1:06:33 and finished 203rd in Ageo with a 10 km split of 31:03, along with photos and video of himself in the race wearing a bib number beginning with 11. Fox did not appear in the results by name or in that time or place, the closest match being a 1:06:54 gross, 1:06:50 net finish time with a 31:21 10 km split for 18th place in the JAAF-registered division and 209th overall by bib number 1129, registered to a non-Japanese Tokyo-resident club runner. The club runner, Harrisson Uk , readily confirmed that he had given his bib to Fox, saying, "I gave my number to Matt. It wasn't me."...
82 comments
Read more

Batt-Doyle and Strintzos Break Records at Launceston Half

Australians Isobel Batt-Doyle and Haftu Strintzos turned in record-breaking performances to win the McGrath Launceston Running Festival Peppers Silo Half Marathon in Tasmania. Running with a private male pacer, NR holder Batt-Doyle dusted the field with the fastest half marathon ever by an Australian woman on Australian soil, a 1:08:46 CR that put her 2 and a half minutes ahead of runner-up Genevieve Gregson . Last year's runner-up Yumi Yoshikawa was almost a minute back from Gregson in 3rd in 1:12:03, but was almost run down by club runner Ayaka Shimoyamada . Starting slow in her international debut, Shimoyamada moved up from 7th over the 2nd half of the race to finish 4th in 1:12:06, kicking hard in the home straight to try to catch Yoshikawa and momentarily blacking out after finishing. Kaho Onishi was 7th in 1:12:45 in her own international debut. The men's half had pacing set at 2:53/km to try to deliver the first-ever sub-61 half marathon on Australian soil. CR holde...
Post a Comment
Read more

CHN and JPN National Records Go Down - Weekend Track Update

There weren't any Japanese athletes in action at the Rabat Diamond League meet Sunday, but 2 lower-tier domestic meets produced new national records. At the Nittai University Time Trials meet in Yokohama, Samuel Kibathi (Toyota) led the top 5 in the men's 10000 m under 28 minutes in 27:39.97. In 3rd, China's Wenjie Wang took just over a second off his own NR from the same meet last year, setting a new record of 27:47.53. His teammate Haoran Tang was 6th in a 28:27.44 PB, with the top Japanese time in the race being a 28:33.39 for 8th from Jin Yuasa (Toyota). Amazingly, Wang and Tang were back the next day on day 2 of the Nittai meet, Wang running a PB of 13:35.58 for 4th in the A-heat and Tang winning the B-heat in a PB of 13:38.80. Isaac Ndiema took the A-heat in 13:26.49, with the fastest Japanese time going to Yuhei Urano (Fujitsu) with a 13:35.94 for 5th behind Wang. Other Nittai highlights: Deborah Chemutai (Univ. Ent.) won a photo finish against Yua Nagamori ...
Post a Comment
Read more