The Chuo Hatsujo corporate team has announced on its social media that Kengo Yajima is leaving its team. Born in 1996, Yajima is 27 years old. At Chiba's Shiritsu Funabashi H.S. he made the National High School Championships 5000 m and ran the Third Stage at the National High School Ekiden, contributing to Funabashi's 6th place finish. At Hosei University he ran both the Izumo Ekiden and Hakone Ekiden, anchoring Hosei at Hakone his 3rd year to bring them in for 6th overall.
Joining Chuo Hatsujo in 2019, he ran 5000 m and 10000 m PBs of 14:15.09 and 29:12.15. He ran the New Year Ekiden national championships twice, placing 29th on the Fifth Stage in 2020 and 27th on the Seventh Stage in 2021. Most notably, he ran as a guide runner for blind corporate league athlete Shinya Wada, helping Wada break the marathon national record and medal on the track in the 2021 Tokyo Paralympics.
"The last four years on the team have been a great and valuable experience," Yajima said in written comments. "I want to say thank you to the team coaches and staff, the other athletes, and the Chuo Hatsujo employees who gave me their support every day. I thank you all."
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