Yuri Yoshizumi and Ryunosuke Omi Win Again at 77th Fuji Mountain Race, Salt Lake City Olympics Gold Medalist Hoffman 2nd
The 77th running of the Fuji Mountain Race took place on July 26. In the long course summit race, 21 km with around 3000 m of climb from Fuji Yoshida city hall to the peak of Mount Fuji, Yuri Yoshizumi won the women's race in 3:13:08 and Ryunosuke Omi the men's race in 2:42:24.;
In the women's race, last year's 2nd-placer Rieko Koshi led Yoshizumi by 19 seconds at the end of the road section at around 11.5 km. But on the trail section after that Yoshizumi passed her and built a winning lead to score her sixth Fuji Mountain Race title since 2017. 2011, 2012, 2015 and 2016 winner Mina Ogawa was 2nd in 3:21:44, with Koshi hanging on to make the podium again in 3:25:02 for 3rd.
Having won in his summit course debut last year, Omi was in the lead at the 11.5 km checkpoint. But by the Fifth Stage checkpoint he had been overtaken by Ruy Ueda and dropped two minutes behind. But Ueda, running the summit course for the first time, faded after hitting the steepest trail section and was caught by both Omi and Austrian Christian Hoffman. 49 years old, Hoffman was the cross-country skiing 30 km gold medalist at the 2002 Salt Lake City Winter Olympics and bronze medalist in the 50 km at the 1998 Nagano Winter Olympics.
From the Fifth Stage to the Eighth Stage checkpoint Hoffman was a minute and a half faster than Omi, splitting an excellent 58:37, and closed to within two minutes. In the last kilometer from the Eighth Stage to the summit Hoffman outran Omi by 67 seconds, but Omi hung on to make it two in a row, even though his time was 53 seconds slower than last year's. Hoffman was only 52 seconds behind in 2:43:16, with Tatsuya Itagaki running down Ueda for 3rd in 2:49:59.
In the Fifth Stage short course race, 15 km with 1480 m elevation gain, Takako Takamura won the women's race in 1:41:44 with Sho Matsumoto winning the men's race in 1:26:53. Past women's summit course winner Yuri Kanbara was 10th in the Fifth Stage race in 1:58:06.
77th Fuji Mountain Race
26 July, 2024
Women's Summit Course
1. Yuri Yoshizumi - 3:13:08
2. Mina Ogawa - 3:21:44
3. Rieko Koshi - 3:25:02
4. Honoka Akiyama - 3:29:13
5. Chihiro Aibara - 3:32:33
6. Airi Sawada - 3:44:02
7. Mari Fujimoto - 3:52:01
8. Mami Saito - 3:54:43
9. Mai Funakoda - 3:55:23
10. Adeline Smirnova - 3:56:15
Men's Summit Course
1. Ryunosuke Omi - 2:42:24
2. Christian Hoffman - 2:43:16
3. Tatsuya Itagaki - 2:49:59
4. Kei Ikushima - 2:50:39
5. Taiga Yamaguchi - 2:51:02
6. Ruy Ueda - 2:51:32
7. Naoki Satani - 2:57:31
8. Toshiaki Murata - 2:57:40
9. Tsubasa Fuji - 2:59:37
10. Kensuke Yoshimura - 3:00:55
Women's Fifth Stage Course
1. Takako Takamura - 1:41:44
2. Yoshimi Tanaka - 1:44:01
3. Ryoko Tanabe - 1:46:47
4. Hiyori Hirata - 1:48:50
5. Yui Kamiya - 1:50:49
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10. Yuri Kanbara - 1:58:06
Men's Fifth Stage Course
1. Sho Matsumoto - 1:26:53
2. Shosei Habu - 1:28:01
3. Takamaru Kawasaki - 1:28:24
4. Hirotoshi Saito - 1:28:54
5. Hiroya Funamizu - 1:29:09
source article:
translated and edited by Brett Larner
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