The Lima World U20 Championships wrapped with 5th-place finishes by Japanese athletes in both finals that had them. In the men's 3000 mSC final, Soma Nagahara started conservatively, sitting 11th at 1000 m in 2:49.36 with leader Edmund Serem of Kenya almost 2 second ahead. Over the next 1000 m Nagahara moved up into 5th, and that's where he stayed. Serem took gold in an U20 world-leading 8:15.28, and with 8 of the next 9 finishers running PBs to get there Nagahara hung on for 5th in a PB 8:30.37 just over 6 seconds outside the medals.
Nagahara's former Saku Chosei H.S. teammate Tetsu Sasaki, who had scratched from the 3000 m earlier in the championships, was in 15th at 1000 m but dropped to last, 16th of 16 in 9:16.20 and the only athlete not to break 9 minutes.
The men's 4x400 m relay got off to a slow start, opening runner Ryota Oishi 7th of 9 in 47.66. Japan's next two runners Kentaro Shirahata and Kairi Gonda moved up to 6th and then 5th, and with a strong run from anchor Kyo Kikuta they held on to 5th in a season best 3:06.94. All told that brought the overall Japanese team's performance in Lima to one silver medal, two bronzes, one 4th, five 5th-places, two 6th, one 7th and two 8th, sort of a gold to cap it but within the range of expectation.
© 2024 Brett Larner, all rights reserved
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