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Toyo Breaks 4x400 m Collegiate Record - National University Championships Day 4


The National University Track and Field Championships wrapped up Sunday with another collegiate record. Following Mao Shimano's 100 mH hurdle record Saturday, the Toyo University men dominated in the 4x400 m relay final. Running with a completely different lineup from when it set the 3:04.08 meet record 2 years ago, the Toyo team of Rui Yamasaki, Kira Hirakawa, Kentaro Shirahata and Katsuo Tsujiura ran 3:03.64 for the win, 0.07 under the old collegiate record set by Nihon University in 2000 before any of them had been born.

The women's 4x400 m final wasn't quite up to collegiate record level, but the top 2 teams still both broke the meet record. Sonoda Gakuen University scored the win in 3:35.41 with a lineup that included Hinata Tochio and Yuzuki Nakao from its 2023 MR-setting lineup with the addition of 2nd-year twins Ayu Yoshii and Mayu Yoshii. Ritsumeikan University was 2nd in 3:36.28, but that was good enough to break SGU's old record of 3:36.71.

After clearing 24 seconds in both the first-round heats and semifinals, Ami Takahashi of Tsukuba University broke the women's 200 m MR in the final with a 23.36 (+0.1) for the win. That put her over half a second ahead of runner-up Yuzuki Kojima from Ritsumeikan University. One other meet record fell in the men's 800 m, where Ikuei University 1st-year Kairu Yamaga outleaned Kanoya Taiiku University's Sota Okamura for the win, Yamaga getting under the old record by 0.04 in 1:46.79 and Okamura just missing in 1:46.86.

In overall team scoring, Tsukuba University took the women's title by 2 points over Ritsumeikan University, 71 to 69. Juntendo University was the men's champion with 78 points, Tokai University 2nd at 64. Combining women's and men's scores put Juntendo as the #1 overall athletic university in the country. It's a truism that for long distance all the top men's programs are in the Tokyo area due to the gravitational effects of the Hakone Ekiden, while women's programs are more geographically diverse. What was interesting in the team results was that the same was true across events. While the top 5 men's teams were all from the Tokyo-centric Kanto Region, the top 5 women's teams came from 3 different regions.

94th National University Track and Field Championships

Day Four Highlights
JFE Harenokuni Stadium, Okayama, 8 June 2025

1. Ami Takahashi (3rd yr., Tsukuba Univ.) - 23.36 - MR
2. Yuzuki Kojima (3rd yr., Ritsumeikan Univ.) - 23.92
3. Koyuki Nagaishi (4th yr., Ritsumeikan Univ.) - 24.02
4. Aoi Sato (3rd yr., Aoyama Gakuin Univ.) - 24.05
5. Miyuko Maeda (3rd yr., Fukuoka Univ.) - 24.19
6. Miu Sugimoto (1st yr., Aoyama Gakuin Univ.) - 24.38
7. Shihori Sato (3rd yr., Juntendo Univ.) - 29.56
8. Jennifer Saita (2nd yr., Konan Univ.) - 32.63

1. Seisho Sasaki (2nd yr., Iwate Univ.) - 20.896
1. Akito Ohashi (4th yr., Kantaiheiyo Univ.) - 20.896
3. Sora Yokoyama (4th yr., Chukyo Univ.) - 20.96
4. Hayate Tanaka (4th yr., Kyoto Sangyo Univ.) - 21.01
5. Ryotaro Hama (1st yr., Hosei Univ.) - 21.04
6. Kaisei Uchida (3rd yr., Juntendo Univ.) - 21.10
7. Ryunosuke Mizuno (2nd yr., Waseda Univ.) - 21.18
8. Toya Tanaka (1st yr., Okayama Shoka Univ. GS) - 21.19

1. Senri Mori (2nd yr., Shigakkan Univ.) - 2:05.51
2. Yuri Nishida (2nd yr., Ritsumeikan Univ.) - 2:05.70
3. Kurumi Sugure (3rd yr., Tsukuba Univ.) - 2:06.31
4. Mahiro Hasegawa (4th yr., Kyoto Kyoiku Univ.) - 2:06.38
5. Arisa Matsuo (2nd yr., Kyoto Kyoiku Univ.) - 2:07.78
6. Ayano Nakako (4th yr., Keio Univ.) - 2:08.23
7. Riho Hirano (2nd yr., Kantaiheiyo Univ.) - 2:10.73
8. Sari Kamei (2nd yr., Kyoto Kyoiku Univ.) - 2:11.29

1. Kairu Yamaga (1st yr., Ikuei Univ.) - 1:46.79 - MR
2. Sota Okamura (3rd yr., Kanoya Taiiku Univ.) - 1:46.86
3. Takuto Nagasawa (4th yr., Nittai Univ.) - 1:47.40
4. Hinata Maeda (4th yr., Kantaiheiyo Univ.) - 1:47.85
5. Takumi Shiobara (4th yr., Juntendo Univ.) - 1:48.26
6. Nanaki Manno (2nd yr., Kansai Univ.) - 1:48.75
7. Akito Mizuno (2nd yr., Chukyo Univ.) - 1:48.76
8. Fuga Moritama (3rd yr., Kansai Univ.) - 1:49.57

1. Miku Takino (2nd yr., Ritsumeikan Univ.) - 57.22
2. Rene Shinto (4th yr., Shobi Gakuen Univ.) - 57.62
3. Shiori Chiba (2nd yr., Waseda Univ.) - 57.74
4. Arisa Ogasawara (3rd yr., Fukuoka Univ.) - 58.12
5. Meri Masuko (4th yr., Chuo Univ.) - 58.51
6. Haru Hiraki (3rd yr., Osaka Seikei Univ.) - 58.62
7. Marino Taneru (4th yr., Tokyo Gakugei Univ.) - 58.80
8. Shion Fukuoka (1st yr., Fukuoka Univ.) - 1:00:19

1. Daiki Ogawa (4th yr., Toyo Univ.) - 48.95
2. Shota Fuchigami (2nd yr., Waseda Univ.) - 49.24
3. Yuki Morioka (4th yr., Waseda Univ.) - 49.62
4. Hayato Shimoda (2nd yr., Toyo Univ.) - 49.67
5. Ryosuke Takahashi (4th yr., Hosei Univ.) - 49.68
6. Keigo Tahara (4th yr., Ritsumeikan Univ.) - 50.03
7. Kiyoto Yanagita (3rd yr., Toyo Univ.) - 50.19
8. Shu Watanabe (4th yr., Nittai Univ.) - 50.37

1. Ayana Yamashita (4th yr., Osaka Gakuin Univ.) - 9:57.70
2. Yuka Komatsu (4th yr., Tsukuba Univ.) - 10:02.76
3. Mayu Kawase (4th yr., Daito Bunka Univ.) - 10:05.81
4. Haruka Yamada (4th yr., Daito Bunka Univ.) - 10:31.63
5. Saho Tomita (1st yr., Juntendo Univ.) - 10:36.19

1. Soma Nagahara (2nd yr., Juntendo Univ.) - 8:35.25
2. Sanetada Ono (2nd yr., Tokai Univ.) - 8:36.75
3. Kenneth Kipngeno (1st yr., Sapporo Gakuin Univ.) - 8:37.23
4. Solomon Mutoku (2nd yr., Soka Univ.) - 8:38.17
5. Kosuke Tsuji (2nd yr., Juntendo Univ.) - 8:43.04

1. Sonoda Gakuen University - 3:35.41 - MR
2. Ritsumeikan University - 3:36.28 (MR)
3. Aoyama Gakuin University - 3:38.87
4. Fukuoka University - 3:39.55
5. Surugadai University - 3:40.67
6. Tsukuba University - 3:42.56
7. Osaka Seikei University - 3:42.87
8. Konan University - 3:43.95

1. Toyo University - 3:03.64 - UR, MR
2. Chuo University - 3:05.62
3. Kwansei Gakuin University - 3:05.71
4. Juntendo University - 3:05.90
5. Meiji University - 3:06.03
6. Kinki University - 3:06.34
7. Nihon University - 3:07.73
8. Kyushu Kyoritsu University - 3:09.86

1. Sota Haraguchi (3rd yr., Juntendo Univ.) - 2.18 m
2. Shun Yamanaka (1st yr., Kyoto Univ. GS) - 2.15 m
3. Daina Okamatsu (3rd yr., Chukyo Univ.) - 2.15 m

1. Rio Sasaki (4th yr., Nittai Univ.) - 4.10 m
2. Mitsuki Kobayashi (3rd yr., Nittai Univ.) - 4.10 m
3. Riho Okada (2nd yr., Nittai Univ.) - 4.00 m

1. Hazuki Otsuka (4th yr., Aoyama Gakuin Univ.) - 13.13 m (+0.7)
2. Momona Hirose (3rd yr., Sonoda Gakuen Univ.) - 13.04 m (+0.3)
3. Ririya Yamasaki (1st yr., Juntendo Univ.) - 13.01 m (+1.8)

1. Kotomi Okuyama (3rd yr., Okayama Shoka Univ.) - 15.35 m
2. Niko Murase (3rd yr., Kyushu Kyoritsu Univ.) - 15.13 m
3. Suzu Nakahara (3rd yr., Osaka Taiiku Univ.) - 14.67 m

1. Akito Yamada (3rd yr., Hosei Univ.) - 17.59 m
2. Jason Atuobeng (1st yr., Fukuoka Univ. GS) - 17.40 m
3. Yohei Tomari (3rd yr., Kantaiheiyo Univ.) - 16.74 m

1. Haruka Nakao (3rd yr., Tsukuba Univ.) - 5330
2. Ayu Kariya (1st yr., Nittai Univ.) - 5306
3. Karin Shimomoto (2nd yr., Tokyo Gakugei Univ.) - 5250

1. Tsukuba University - 71
2. Ritsumeikan University - 69
3. Nittai University - 61
4. Juntendo University - 55.5
5. Fukuoka University - 48.5
6. Kyushu Kyoritsu University - 43
7. Aoyama Gakuin University - 37
8. Daito Bunka University - 35
9. Sonoda Gakuen University - 25
10. Waseda University - 24

1. Juntendo University - 78
2. Tokai University - 64
3. Waseda University - 61
4. Toyo University - 58
5. Tsukuba University - 49.5
6. Chukyo University - 38
7. Kantaiheiyo University - 33.5
8. Nittai University - 31.5
9. Hosei University - 29
10. Nihon University - 26.5

Combined Team Overall
1. Juntendo University - 133.5
2. Tsukuba University - 120.5
3. Nittai University - 92.5
4. Waseda University - 85
5. Ritsumeikan University - 75

© 2025 Brett Larner, all rights reserved

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