Skip to main content

Cherop, Mwangi and Ekarare Win at Edion Distance Challenge


At Thursday's Edion Distance Challenge in Osaka's Nagai Stadium, 2023 World Cross Country Championships mixed relay gold medalist Mirriam Cherop (Shin Nihon Jusetsu Group) won the most competitive race of the day, taking over 30 seconds off her 5000 m PB with a 15:06.46. Cherop ran in a trio with the top two from last month's Queen's Ekiden international stage, CR-breaker Agnes Mwikali (Kyocera) and 2nd-placer Judy Jepngetich (Shiseido), splitting 3:00-6:02-9:07-12:12 en route with Jepngetich doing all the work.

With 300 m to go Cherop went to the front for the first time, Mwikali right behind her but Jepngetich losing touch. Mwikali tried to go by on the curve, but coming into the home straight Cherop opened up and held on for the win. Mwikali took 2nd in 15:06.96, with Jepngetich 3rd in 15:09.18. Queens Ekiden 2nd leg winner Yuma Yamamoto (Sekisui Kagaku) was the top Japanese finisher at 6th in 15:30.03.

Cosmas Mwangi (Chugoku Denryoku) won a tough back-and-forth race in the men's 5000 m A-heat against Daniel Kosen (Fujitsu), Mwangi 1st in 13:26.26 to Kosen's 13:26.44. Takuma Sunaoka (Konica Minolta) was top Japanese at 4th in 13:51.08. Hellen Ekarare (Toyota Jidoshokki) had an easy win in the women's 10000 m Heat 2, running 32:20.34 with Yumi Furukawa (Daiichi Seimei) 2nd in 32:22.25. Miku Suginaga (Sonoda H.S.) took the women's 3000 m Heat 3 in 9:36.31.

Edion Distance Challenge

Nagai Stadium, Osaka, 7 Dec. 2023

Women's 5000 m Heat 5
1. Mirriam Cherop (Shin Nihon Jusetsu Group) - 15:06.46 - PB
2. Agnes Mwikali (Kyocera) - 15:06.96
3. Judy Jepngetich (Shiseido) - 15:09.18
4. Janet Nyiva (Panasonic) - 15:19.60
5. Sarah Wanjiru (Daito Bunka Univ.) - 15:22.20
6. Yuma Yamamoto (Sekisui Kagaku) - 15:30.03
7. Sora Shinozakura (Panasonic) - 15:31.45
8. Erika Tanoura (Sekisui Kagaku) - 15:32.14
9. Desta Burka (Denso) - 15:34.21
10. Esther Wangui (Starts) - 15:40.70
11. Hikaru Kitagawa (Osaka Geijutsu Univ.) - 15:48.18
12. Nanami Watanabe (Panasonic) - 15:48.83
13. Rina Sasaki (Sekisui Kagaku) - 15:49.13
14. Mariya Noda (Daito Bunka Univ.) - 15:50.82
15. Chikako Mori (Sekisui Kagaku) - 15:53.54
16. Tabitha Njeri Kamau (Mitsui Sumitomo Kaijo) - 15:53.70
17. Kae Gyu (Japan Post) - 15:54.11
18. Yuna Takahashi (Shimamura) - 15:56.99
19. Toshika Tamura (Hitachi) - 15:58.98
20. Mai Nakamura (Uniqlo) - 16:08.07

Men's 5000 m Heat 3
1. Cosmas Mwangi (Chugoku Denryoku) - 13:26.26
2. Daniel Kosen (Fujitsu) - 13:26.44
3. Josphat Ledama Kisaisa (Kao) - 13:45.21
4. Takuma Sunaoka (Konica Minolta) - 13:51.08
5. Yeneblo Biyazen (Hiramatsu Myoin) - 13:56.17

Women's 10000 m Heat 2
1. Helen Ekarare (Toyota Jidoshokki) - 32:20.34
2. Yumi Furukawa (Daiichi Seimei) - 32:22.25
3. Yuna Wada (Japan Post) - 32:49.59
4. Hisami Ishii (Sysmex) - 32:51.58
5. Erina Yasui (Iwatani Sangyo) - 32:56.95

Women's 3000 m Heat 2
1. Miku Suginaga (Sonoda H.S.) - 9:36.31
2. Riho Yoshida (Toyota Jidoshokki) - 9:44.15
3. Noa Ushiroda (Sonoda H.S.) - 9:50.51

© 2023 Brett Larner, all rights reserved

Buy Me A Coffee

Labels:

Comments

Stefan said…
I noticed Daiichi Seimei have 3 very accomplished 10000m runners: Haruka Kokai (who we will see on Sunday's National 10000m Championships), Yuka Suzuki (MGC Winner) and now Yumi Furukawa. I'm curious to see if Haruka Kokai can mix it with the likes of Ririka Hironaka and Rino Goshima. She has been an athlete on a steady rise and at only 20 years old I think she is one to watch. 3 Personal Bests in 2023, in the 3000m (9:04.56), 5000m (15:23.98) and 10000m (32:01.83). If she can break 32 it will be a very good progression this year. I'm hoping she can do it. She's a very good Exiden runner too so I'm thinking she is one who may be following Yuka Suzuki's path into the longer road distances in the near future.

Smart run by Mirriam Cherop to win her race. Whilst the time was not super fast it was very well raced on her part.

December 8, 2023 at 3:37 PM
Brett Larner said…
Yes, they should all be interesting in Nationals. Coincidentally, Mirriam will be doing some training with Daiichi Seimei later this month before going back to Kenya for the holidays. Given the credentials of the 2nd and 3rd-placers and how conservatively she ran it seems like 14 minutes is just around the corner. One more thing to look forward to in the spring.
December 8, 2023 at 4:01 PM
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