Skip to main content

East Japan and Tohoku Fukushi Win 77th Towada Hachimantai Ekiden


Two classic midsummer ekidens happened during the Paris Olympics, the 77th Towada Hachimantai Ekiden in Akita and the 49th Mount Fuji Ekiden in Shizuoka. We didn't have time to cover them then, but better late than never.

The Towada Hachimantai Ekiden was held Aug. 7 on a 5-leg, 71.4 km course from Lake Towada on the Akita/Aomori border to Hachimantai in Kazuno, Akita. For the third time in the race's history, the East Japan Corporate Select Team took the top spot in the men's race, winning in 3:49:05. East Japan was 4th after the 1st leg, with 2nd runner Shota Sugimoto moving them up to 2nd. They fell to 5th on the next leg, but after that a stage win by Neo Namiki and a new stage CR by Yuito Yamamoto on the final two stages put them out front.

Yamamoto graduated from Josai University in March. At Josai he won the uphill Fifth Stage at both last year's and this year's Hakone Ekidens, with his new CR there this year earning him the MVP award at Hakone's 100th running. The Comodi Iida team was 2nd in 3:51:14, with Komori Corporation 3rd in 3:51:50.

In the 5-leg, 28.3 km women's race, Tohoku Fukushi University won in 1:41:00.

77th Towada Hachimantai Ekiden

Akita, 7 August 2024
men: 5 stages, 71.4 km, 13 teams
women: 5 stages, 28.3 km, 3 teams

Women's Team Results
1. Tohoku Fukushi University B - 1:41:00

Men's Team Results
1. East Japan Corporate Select Team - 3:49:05
2. Comodi Iida - 3:51:14
3. Komori Corp. - 3:51:50
4. Fujisan no Meisui - 3:53:04
5. Hokuriku Corporate Select Team - 3:55:26
6. Fukushima T&F Assoc. - 4:08:57

Men's Individual Stage Results
First Stage (13.0 km) - Tatsuya Tsunashima (Hokuriku) - 40:28
Second Stage (13.0 km) - James Bunuka (Hokuriku) - 37:14
Third Stage (15.7 km) - Antipas Kibet (Komori Corp.) - 46:20
Fourth Stage (15.9 km) - Neo Namiki (East Japan) - 49:45
Fifth Stage (13.8 km, uphill) - Yuito Yamamoto (East Japan) - 49:52

source article:
translated and edited by Brett Larner

Buy Me A Coffee


Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Most-Read This Week

M.I.A.

Sorry to have been silent for a while. JRN associate editor Mika Tokairin  was in Taiwan for Ironman Penghu, where she won her age group to qualify for Kona for the first time. Right after that we moved for the first time in 14 years, and immediately after that I headed to the U.S. to help Keita Sato  get settled in his new training base in Flagstaff. We'll be resuming normal operations shortly with a big roundup of results over the last 2 weeks. Brett Larner
Post a Comment
Read more

Everything You Need to Know About the 2026 Hakone Ekiden

The Hakone Ekiden is the world's biggest road race, 2 days of road relay action with Japan's 20 best university teams racing 10 half marathon-scale legs from central Tokyo to the mountains east of Mount Fuji and back. The level just keeps going higher and higher , hitting the point this year where there are teams with 10-runner averages of 13:33.10 for 5000 m, 27:55.98 for 10000 m, and 1:01:20 for the half marathon. It's never been better, and with great weather in the forecast it's safe to say this could be one of the best races in Hakone's 102-year history, especially on Day One. If you've seen it then you know NTV's live broadcast is the best sports broadcast in the world, with the pre-race show kicking off at 7:00 a.m. Japan time on the 2nd and 3rd and the race starting at 8:00 a.m. sharp. If you've got a VPN you should be able to watch it on TVer starting at 7:50 a.m. on the 2nd , and again at 7:50 a.m. on the 3rd . There's even a 2-hour high...
3 comments
Read more