Meiji University's Nam Seungryong at the 1936 Berlin Olympics
Like everywhere else, athletes from Kenya and Ethiopia have had a major impact at the Hakone Ekiden over the last 35 years. But almost 70 years before the first two Kenyans suited up in the Yamanashi Gakuin University colors, athletes from another country had an even bigger impact on the event's formative years, a legacy that is mostly forgotten now, or at least unacknowledged.
Following Japan's annexation of Korea in 1910, it set about reshaping and modernizing the Korean educational system at all levels, founding universities like Keijo Imperial University in what later became Seoul, and bringing students to study at universities within Japan itself. But a college education remained a relative rarity, with less than 0.05% of the population having gone to university by the end of the Japanese occupation in 1945.
The Hakone Ekiden began during this period, and at its 3rd running in 1922 two athletes from occupied Korea competed, Lee Myeongsik of Chuo University and Moon Cheongil of Meiji University. Both played important roles on the team, Moon breaking the course record on the Seventh Leg to move Meiji up from 5th to its final position of 3rd, and Lee running down Keio University anchor Motochiku Kasahara to move Chuo up from 5th to 4th on the final stage. Moon was back in 1923 to anchor Meiji to a 4th-place finish, but after the Great Kanto Earthquake and subsequent events in September, 1923 he and other Korean student athletes were absent from the 1924 and 1925 races.
Moon returned in 1926 after transferring to Chuo, and with a good run on the Ninth Stage helped Chuo win the first of what became 14 overall titles, the most in Hakone history to date. And from there until 1941, Korean athletes became a key material in the fabric of early Hakone culture. After debuting during Moon's senior year in 1927, Kwon Taeha broke stage CR three years in a row, putting Meiji into the lead for its 1928 overall CR-breaking win and anchoring them to a CR title defense in 1929. In 1932 after his sixth and final Hakone he ran the 1932 Los Angeles Olympics marathon under the Japanese flag, placing 9th. Another Korean athlete, Kim Eunbae, placed 6th for Japan in Los Angeles, and in 1934 he broke the Hakone Seventh Stage CR to help Waseda University win its last pre-war title.
Waseda University's Kim Eunbae and Meiji University's Kwon Taeha at the 1932 Los Angeles Olympics
Waseda wasn't the only school to follow the lead of Chuo and Meiji. At the 1928 Hakone Baek Namun overtook Nihon University's Misao Noguchi and broke the Ninth Stage CR to put Tokyo Nogyo University into 3rd, only for anchor Masutaro Ishida to drop back to 4th. In 1935 Lee Guha broke the uphill Fifth Stage CR to lead Senshu University to a 6th-place finish in just its second Hakone appearance. Four years later Kim Samjik was second on the important Fifth Stage, playing a key part in Senshu's sole overall victory. 1939 saw Chuo's Kim Gyeomdo become the first of only two non-Japanese athletes ever to win the First Stage, and in 1940 Park Gwangchae won the Fifth Stage to move Toyo University into 4th place.
All told, from 1922 to 1941 a total of 37 Korean athletes representing 12 universities ran the Hakone Ekiden and its 1941 substitute and were a part of five winning teams from four schools. Numbers peaked in 1938 when 13 Koreans ran out of a total field of 120, and Chuo alone featured four on its ten-man team that year. Even as late as the November 30, 1941 Ome Ekiden replacement for the 1942 Hakone, six Koreans were in the race. Compare those numbers to those of the Africans who've run Hakone and it's clear how important the Koreans' impact was. In the 35 years from 1989 to 2023, a total of 36 African-born athletes, 34 from Kenya and two from Ethiopia, representing 12 universities ran Hakone and contributed to three winning teams, all from Yamanashi Gakuin and the first of those with two Kenyan runners. 2023 saw the most Africans in a single race, seven, with 2024 also having seven on its entry lists. It's interesting that the two lists of 12 universities that enlisted athletes from the two foreign-born groups had only one point of overlap, Senshu University.
But the biggest legacy of the Korean contribution to the Hakone Ekiden came where the event's founder Shizo Kanakuri envisioned it, in the Olympic marathon. Meiji's Nam Seungryong had quality runs in 1935 and 1936, breaking the Fifth Stage CR his first time out and a respectable 5th on the Third Stage his second. Months later, wearing the Japanese uniform Nam took the bronze medal in the marathon at the 1936 Berlin Olympics, the only Hakone athlete ever to win an Olympic medal. Another Korean in Japanese colors, world record-breaker Son Gijeong, took gold, and famously resisted being identified as Japanese during the medal ceremony and in comments afterward. The Dong-a Ilbo newspaper removed the Japanese flag from images it published of Son's victory, leading the occupying Japanese government to shut it down and arrest its staff members.
Waseda's Kim, left, and Meiji's Kwon, shaking hands, meet Paavo Nurmi at the 1932 Los Angeles Olympics
What's lesser known is that Nam returned to Meiji and ran Hakone again in 1937 as an Olympic medalist, winning the Third Stage and putting Meiji into the lead. And Son went with him, enrolling in Meiji. But according to Meiji professor emeritus Zenichi Terashima, in the wake of Son's actions after winning gold the Japanese government had barred him from competing again as an athlete or appearing at public events, and that meant he was never allowed to line up for Meiji at Hakone.
After returning to Korea and the end of the war Son became active as a coach and within the Korean athletics federation and Olympic committee. Japan was banned from the 1948 London Olympics, but two of the three Korean men who ran there wearing their own flag for the first time were coached by Son. Most of the best Korean marathoners in the decades to follow had some connection to him, and the story arc reached its apex at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics when Son's protege Hwang Young-cho beat 1991 world champion and former Hakone downhill star Hiromi Taniguchi and two other Japanese men to win gold. Even Yoshio Koide, coach of 2000 Sydney Olympics gold medalist and first-ever woman to break 2:20 Naoko Takahashi, credited Son with informing his ideas on coaching.
The November 30, 1941 Ome Ekiden was the end of the road for the Koreans in Hakone's formative years. The Japanese occupation fell in 1945, and larger changes in the world meant Korean names no longer appeared in the results when Hakone returned in 1947. But on some level they still remained. Post-war it was more common for Korean citizens born in Japan to use Japanese names while maintaining Korean identities, and collegiate athletes were among them. Waseda's Tetsuhiko Kin was the most famous, an uphill specialist who helped Waseda win Hakone in 1985 and 1986 and broke the Fifth Stage CR during the 1986 victory, but there have been and still are others. Many don't reveal their Korean identities publicly.
The relationship between Korea and Japan is complicated to say the least, and it's been hard to write this without straying into controversial areas outside my expertise. Kim Jaeryong, 10th in Barcelona, 2nd a year later in Boston and 4th at the Stuttgart World Championships, told JRN his son Kim Young-hoon enrolled at Hakone hopeful Kanto Gakuin University a few years ago specifically to learn from Japanese marathon know-how. In its formative first 25 years, the Hakone Ekiden was enriched by the Korean athletes who lined up alongside their Japanese teammates, and in turn the golden years of Korean marathoning were enriched by the experience and knowledge they gained and brought back home. It's not a consequence that when people like Kim became a rarity the outcome changed, or that this aspect of Hakone's history and legacy is never discussed publicly and remains unknown to most of its tens of millions of fans.
Korean Athletes in the Hakone Ekiden, 1922-1941
Lee Myeongsik - Chuo University
1922 Hakone Ekiden - 3rd, Tenth Stage, 1:22:47, Chuo 4th overall
Moon Cheongil - Meiji University / Chuo University
1922 Hakone Ekiden - 2nd, Seventh Stage, 1:21:30 (CR), Meiji 3rd overall
1923 Hakone Ekiden - 4th, Tenth Stage, 1:23:53, Meiji 4th overall
1926 Hakone Ekiden - 3rd, Ninth Stage, 1:16:17, Chuo 1st overall
1927 Hakone Ekiden - 4th, Fifth Stage, 1:57:34, Chuo 2nd overall
Kwon Taeha - Meiji University
1927 Hakone Ekiden - 3rd, Eight Stage, 1:27:23, Meiji 3rd overall
1928 Hakone Ekiden - 1st, Fourth Stage, 1:14:24 - CR, Meiji 1st overall - CR
1929 Hakone Ekiden - 1st, Tenth Stage, 1:16:33 - CR, Meiji 1st overall - CR
1930 Hakone Ekiden - 1st, Seventh Stage, 1:15:32 - CR, Meiji 2nd overall
1931 Hakone Ekiden - 3rd, Tenth Stage, 1:17:59, Meiji 5th overall
1932 Hakone Ekiden - Fifth Stage, Meiji 9th overall
1932 Los Angeles Olympics marathon - 9th place
Baek Namun - Tokyo Nogyo University
1928 Hakone Ekiden - 1st, Ninth Stage, 1:13:05 - CR, Tokyo Nogyo 4th overall
1929 Hakone Ekiden - 2nd, Seventh Stage, 1:17:04, Tokyo Nogyo 4th overall
1930 Hakone Ekiden - 9th, Eight Stage, 1:24:31, Tokyo Nogyo 8th overall
1931 Hakone Ekiden - 3rd, Sixth Stage, 1:27:25, Tokyo Nogyo 7th overall
Yoo Gwanil - Kansai University
1932 Hakone Ekiden - 9th, Eight Stage, 1:34:19, Kansai 8th overall
Jeong Sanghui - Meiji University
1932 Hakone Ekiden - 8th, Third Stage, 1:22:01, Meiji 9th overall
1933 Hakone Ekiden - 5th, Fourth Stage, 1:18:39, Meiji 4th overall
1934 Hakone Ekiden - 8th, Fourth Stage, 1:20:30, Meiji 6th overall
1935 Hakone Ekiden - 5th, Seventh Stage, 1:17:47, Meiji 5th overall
Ahn Seokgi - Chuo University
1933 Hakone Ekiden - 6th, Tenth Stage, 1:21:45, Chuo 5th overall
Yun Deokhun - Hosei University
1933 Hakone Ekiden - 6th, Eighth Stage, 1:18:42, Hosei 7th overall
1934 Hakone Ekiden - 4th, Eighth Stage, 1:17:51, Hosei 4th overall
Kim Eunbae - Waseda University
1932 Los Angeles Olympics marathon - 6th place
1934 Hakone Ekiden - 1st, Seventh Stage, 1:11:59 - CR, Waseda 1st overall
1935 Hakone Ekiden - 5th, Seventh Stage, 1:17:47, Waseda 2nd overall
Lee Guha - Senshu University
1934 Hakone Ekiden - 2nd, Tenth Stage, 1:16:35, Senshu 10th overall
1935 Hakone Ekiden - 2nd, Fifth Stage, 1:37:17 (CR), Senshu 6th overall
1936 Hakone Ekiden - 7th, Fifth Stage, 1:45:20, Senshu 7th overall
Cho Insang - Waseda University
1935 Hakone Ekiden - 4th, Third Stage, 1:17:42, Waseda 2nd overall
1936 Hakone Ekiden - 2nd, Seventh Stage, 1:13:42, Waseda 2nd overall
Nam Seungryong, Meiji University
1935 Hakone Ekiden - 2nd, Fifth Stage, 1:37:17 (CR), Meiji 5th overall
1936 Hakone Ekiden - 5th, Third Stage, 1:19:19, Meiji 8th overall
1936 Berlin Olympics marathon - bronze medal
1937 Hakone Ekiden - 1st, Third Stage, 1:14:21, Meiji 3rd overall
Choi Gyeonghae, Senshu University
1936 Hakone Ekiden - 8th, Eighth Stage, 1:24:31, Senshu 7th overall
1937 Hakone Ekiden - 3rd, Seventh Stage, 1:13:38, Senshu 5th overall
1938 Hakone Ekiden - 4th, Tenth Stage, 1:19:02, Senshu 2nd overall
Kim Samjol, Yokohama Senmon Gakko
1937 Hakone Ekiden - 9th, Fifth Stage, 1:41:32, Yokohama 13th overall
Ryu Seoksin, Chuo University
1937 Hakone Ekiden - 5th, Fourth Stage, 1:14:13, Chuo 6th overall
1938 Hakone Ekiden - 8th, Third Stage, 1:20:23, Chuo 5th overall
Choi Gunho, Yokohama Senmon Gakko
1937 Hakone Ekiden - 13th, Tenth Stage, 1:30:14, Yokohama 13th overall
1938 Hakone Ekiden - 9th, Second Stage, 1:20:42, Yokohama 10th overall
Lee Huitae, Chuo University
1937 Hakone Ekiden - 7th, Tenth Stage, 1:24:44, Chuo 6th overall
1938 Hakone Ekiden - 6th, Eighth Stage, 1:27:00, Chuo 5th overall
1939 Hakone Ekiden - 5th, Seventh Stage, 1:17:33, Chuo 3rd overall
1940 Hakone Ekiden - 4th, Fourth Stage, 1:20:06, Chuo 3rd overall
Kim Dojin, Rikkyo University
1937 Hakone Ekiden - 6th, Eighth Stage, 1:23:50, Rikkyo 4th overall
1938 Hakone Ekiden - 4th, Eighth Stage, 1:21:19, Rikkyo 4th overall
1939 Hakone Ekiden - 3rd, Eighth Stage, 1:22:27, Rikkyo 5th overall
1941 Ome Ekiden (1st) - 8th (?), Sixth Stage, 1:07:10, Rikkyo 7th overall
1941 Ome Ekiden (2nd) - Third Stage, Rikkyo 9th overall
Yeo Honggu, Hosei University
1938 Hakone Ekiden - 12th, Eighth Stage, 1:34:18, Hosei 11th overall
Jin Suneung, Tokyo Nogyo University
1938 Hakone Ekiden - 9th, Eighth Stage, 1:30:56, Tokyo Nogyo 8th overall
Ki Cheongil, Toyo University
1938 Hakone Ekiden - 11th, First Stage, 1:27:47, Toyo 7th overall
Kim Gyeomdo, Chuo University
1938 Hakone Ekiden - 3rd, First Stage, 1:16:08, Chuo 5th overall
1939 Hakone Ekiden - 1st, First Stage, 1:18:05, Chuo 3rd overall
Joo Sangyeong, Chuo University
1938 Hakone Ekiden - 6th, Second Stage, 1:17:22, Chuo 5th overall
1939 Hakone Ekiden - 3rd, Second Stage, 1:13:35, Chuo 3rd overall
1940 Hakone Ekiden - 3rd, Tenth Stage, 1:29:27, Chuo 3rd overall
Kim Jongmun, Yokohama Senmon Gakko
1938 Hakone Ekiden - 10th, Sixth Stage, 1:37:17, Yokohama 10th overall
1939 Hakone Ekiden - 9th, Sixth Stage, 1:35:22, Yokohama 10th overall
1940 Hakone Ekiden - 4th, Fifth Stage, 1:44:21, Yokohama 7th overall
Park Gwangchae, Toyo University
1938 Hakone Ekiden - 8th, Eighth Stage, 1:29:24, Toyo 7th overall
1939 Hakone Ekiden - 6th, Fifth Stage, 1:43:57, Toyo 8th overall
1940 Hakone Ekiden - 1st, Fifth Stage, 1:40:34, Toyo 5th overall
Kim Samjik, Yokohama Senmon Gakko / Senshu University
1936 Hakone Ekiden - 3rd, Fifth Stage, 1:41:41, Yokohama 14th overall
1938 Hakone Ekiden - 5th, Fifth Stage, 1:39:37, Senshu 2nd overall
1939 Hakone Ekiden - 2nd, Fifth Stage, 1:34:40, Senshu 1st overall
1940 Hakone Ekiden - 2nd, Second Stage, 1:10:26, Senshu 4th overall
1941 Ome Ekiden (2nd) - Fourth Stage, Senshu 3rd overall
Kim Huichung, Nihon Ikai Senmon Gakko
1939 Hakone Ekiden - 3rd, First Stage, 1:21:13, Nihon Ikai 7th overall
Koh Saekdo, Tokyo Nogyo University
1939 Hakone Ekiden - 9th, Ninth Stage, 1:34:06, Tokyo Nogyo 6th overall
1941 Ome Ekiden (1st) - 9th, Fourth Stage, 38:34, Tokyo Nogyo 9th overall
Lee Huheung, Nihon Ikai Senmon Gakko
1940 Hakone Ekiden - 9th, Eighth Stage, 1:36:21, Nihon Ikai 10th overall
Kim Sindeok, Chuo University
1940 Hakone Ekiden - 4th, Seventh Stage, 1:20:36, Chuo 3rd overall
Kim Hyeokjin, Hosei University
1940 Hakone Ekiden - 5th, First Stage, 1:20:00, Hosei 6th overall
1941 Ome Ekiden (1st) - 4th, Sixth Stage, 1:04:02, Hosei 12th overall
1941 Ome Ekiden (2nd) - Third Stage, Hosei 4th overall
Kim Jinmok, Tokyo Nogyo University
1940 Hakone Ekiden - 10th, Eighth Stage, 1:39:24, Tokyo Nogyo 8th overall
1941 Ome Ekiden (1st) - 12th, Seventh Stage, 46:08, Tokyo Nogyo 9th overall
Cho Milrae, Toyo University
1941 Ome Ekiden (1st) - 3rd, Second Stage, 43:06, Toyo 6th overall
Ki Daebin, Aoyama Gakuin University
1941 Ome Ekiden (1st) - 9th, First Stage, 56:25, Aoyama Gakuin 11th overall
Kim Gyeongho, Hosei University
1941 Ome Ekiden (1st) - 4th, Second Stage, 44:21, Hosei 12th overall
1941 Ome Ekiden (2nd) - Fourth Stage, Hosei 4th overall
Huh Sangsun, Senshu University
1941 Ome Ekiden (2nd) - Sixth Stage, Senshu 3rd overall
Nam (nfn), Toyo University
1941 Ome Ekiden (2nd) - Sixth Stage, Toyo 8th overall
special thanks to Park Jaemin for transliteration of names
© 2023 Brett Larner, all rights reserved
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