Australians represented big time at Sunday's Seiko Golden Grand Prix in Tokyo, winning six events and taking one more top 3 spot and another six top 5 placings. The first Aussie win of the day came courtesy of Rose Davies in the women's 3000 m, where she outran main competition Helen Ekalale by 6 seconds to win in a meet record 8:43.38. Yuma Yamamoto broke into the all-time Japanese top 10 with an 8:50.64 PB for 3rd.
After a disappointing run in the 5000 m two weeks ago at the Shaoxing Keqiao Diamond League meet, Jude Thomas made it an Australian double win a MR win in the men's 3000 m in 7:39.69. The top 7 all broke the old MR, with Nagiya Mori continuing his quick rise with an all-time JPN #2 7:41.58 for 4th.
The men's race was marred by a fall right at the start. Having set half marathon and road 5 km national records in his last two races, Tomoki Ota appeared to get clipped from behind by 10000 m NR holder Kazuya Shiojiri when Shiojiri veered to the outside suddenly. Ota fell, and even though he immediately got up he held his right shoulder in pain and stopped after only a couple of meters. A few hours later he texted JRN to say that he had dislocated his right shoulder and was in the hospital getting treatment for it, but that he hadn't broken anything. Collegiate half marathon record holder Kotaro Shinohara also got badly spiked two laps into the race, still running a PB of 7:48.59 for 10th but requiring medical attention afterward.
Liam Adcock delivered the next Australian win in the men's long jump, closing with an 8.20 m (+1.3) to overtake Hibiki Tsuha's 3rd-round 8.15 m (+1.0 m) for the win. 110 mH NR co-holder Shunsuke Izumiya was 3rd at 8.02 m (+0.3) after withdrawing in the 4th round, with Australian Christopher Mitrevski 4th off an opening 7.95 m (+0.7) jump.
With pacing support from Ai Watanabe, Georgia Griffith soloed a 4.01.10 MR to easily win the women's 1500 m and add to the Aussie haul. Japanese NR holder Nozomi Tanaka just held off another Australian, Sarah Billings, for 2nd, 4:06.08 to 4:06.75.
Reece Holder was next in the Aussie arsenal, front-running his way to the 400 m win in 44.76 with Japanese top 2 Fuga Sato and Kentaro Sato in the next 2 spots in 45.23 and 45.76.
Bree Rizzo surprised in the women's 100 m with the last Australia win of the day, beating American Twanisha Terry and Canadian Sade McCreath for 1st in 11.38 (-0.9). Sha'Carri Richardson was off the podium at 4th in 11.47.
In the women's triple jump Owusu Desleigh was 4th at 13.51 m (+0.5), just 1 cm from 3rd placer Akari Funada and 2 cm from 2nd placer Olha Korsun. Japan's Maoko Takashima was the definitive winner, though, jumping 13.66 m (+0.8).
Japan went 1-2-3 in the men's high jump, Tomohiro Shinno clearing 2.27 m on his first attempt and both Yuto Seko and Sota Haraguchi getting over 2.24 m to tie for 2nd. Australian Olympic 5th-placer Brandon Starc was 4th at 2.20 m, hitting it on his first attempt but unable to clear 2.24 m, while Yual Reath was 6th at 2.20 m after sustaining an injury to his calf during warmup.
American Marc Anthony Minichello took the men's javelin on his last attempt with an 82.36 m, 2nd placer Douw Smit and 3rd placer Cyprian Mrzyglod the only other athletes to make it over 80 m. Australia's Cameron McEntyre was 5th at 78.01 m.
Robert Gregory and Andre De Grasse were far out front in the men's 200 m, Gregory getting the win in a season best 20.24 (-2.0) and De Grasse 2nd in 20.29. Veteran Shota Iizuka was a surprise 3rd win a wind-legal 20.67 SB. Aidan Murphy took 5th for Australia in 20.89.
Japanese men's 3000 mSC NR holder Ryuji Miura shook off injury worries after a DNS in Keqiao 2 weeks ago, out kicking Ethiopian Milkesa Fikadu to win in 8:18.96. Olympian Ryoma Aoki was back in good form with his first race under 8:21 since 2023, just, running 8:20.99 for 3rd. Up-and-coming Yutaro Niinae was a DNS, telling JRN pre-race that he had opted to sit it out to be fully ready for next week's Asian Championships in South Korea. Australians Matthew Clarke and Ben Buckingham were 5th and 7th, Clarke in 8:23.60 and Buckingham in 8:27.44.
Olympic women's javelin throw gold medalist Haruka Kitaguchi delivered a season best 64.16 m throw on her 5th attempt, enough to win by 3.5 m. Momone Ueda was the only other athlete to throw over 60 m with a last-round 60.66 m, as South African Jo-Ane Van Dyk took 3rd at 59.51 m. Australia's Mackenzie Little was 9th at 57.90 m.
Tonea Marshall took one of only two wins of the day for the U.S.A., setting a 12.54 (+0.7) MR in the women's 100 mH to beat Alia Armstrong by 0.14. Yumi Tanaka rounded out the podium in 12.81. Celeste Mucci was another 9th-place for Australia in 13.28.
In non-Aussie news, favorite Rachid Muratake won the men's 110 mH final in 13.16 (-1.1) without much pressure. There was no pressure at all in the women's high jump either for Olympic gold medalist Yaroslava Mahuchikh, who cleared 1.91 m and 1.96 m on her first attempts and made one attempt at 2.00 m before calling it a day. Michaele Hruba was the only other athlete over 1.85 m.
Ken Toyoda tried to front-run the men's 400 mH, only to fade in the last 20 m and get caught at the line by American Trevor Bassitt, 48.50 to Toyoda's 48.55.
In the other big upset of the day, Toyo University 4th-year Hiroki Yanagita backed up his wind-aided 9.95 win at last weekend's Kanto Regionals by shutting down Americans Christian Miller and Christian Coleman for the win in 10.06 (+1.1). Miller, Coleman, countryman Pjal Austin and Japan's Abdul Hakim Sani Brown all got passes through the qualifying heats, where Yanagita just squeezed through with the slowest qualifying time, 10.20 (+0.5). Sani Brown ended up scratching from the final after feeling things were off while warming up.
© 2025 Brett Larner, all rights reserved
Comments
I was expecting a bit better from Sato, Mebuki Suzuki seems to have found consistency and I have no idea what to think about Nagiya Mori recent massive improvements.
Won't speculate on that, he surely has heart: I doubted his "struggling" form when he outkicked Sato in the 5000 a few weeks ago and I would have bet against him yesterday too but the last lap showed lots of guts and heart, kudos.
Thankfully Ota didn't break anything. I hope we get to see more meetings have a field like this.
Miura showed beautiful style on his last 250meters sprint and he seems to be fine. I still think right now it doesn't make much sense to have him racing the steeplechase against domestic competition, would have been really fun to see him in the 3000 meters field.
Muratake was impressive again, I don't think the Izumiya experiment is going particularly well but there's still time before World Championship.
Yanagida had another good showing while Sani Brown seems to be struggling this season.
Japan has the chance to field a very competitive 4x100 but the choices will be very difficult to make.