Hofu Yomiuri Marathon Elite Field

Everything in Japanese marathoning is already about qualifying for the MGC Race, Japan's trials race for the L.A. Olympics. Scheduled the same day as the Fukuoka International Marathon, the Dec. 7 Hofu Yomiuri Marathon counts the same weight as Fukuoka, Tokyo and Osaka in men's qualification, with trials spots up to be had by the first 6 Japanese men under 2:09:00 and the first Japanese woman under 2:27:00.

The only real contender to do that among the women is Mizuki Nishimura, running her first marathon off a 1:41:42 CR at the Kumanichi 30k in February. Given the Tenmaya corporate team's track record of success in the marathon, including the current women's NR of 2:18:59, her chances are pretty good. Ayumi Morita ran a 2:31:38 PB in Tokyo last year, but it's a big jump for her to get down to 2:26 and it'll mostly be a question of whether Nishimura executes the same way she did at Kumanichi.

For men there are 6 under 2:09:00 in the last 3 years, with Ryoma Takeuchi the freshest after a 2:08:38 PB for 3rd at Gold Coast this summer. Kazuya Nishiyama and Daisuke Doi both have recent 2:06 times to their names, and Masatoshi Sakata looks promising after a 2:09:08 in Osaka this year. There's no international field per se, but Japan-based Africans Derese Workneh, Bedan Karoki and Patrick Mathenge Wambui will be in the mix to motivate the front end of the Japanese field to keep the pace real.

56th Hofu Yomiuri Marathon Elite Field Highlights

Hofu, Yamaguchi, 7 Dec. 2025

complete field listing

times listed are athletes' best within last 3 years except where noted

Men

Kazuya Nishiyama (Toyota) - 2:06:45 (6th, Osaka 2023)

Daisuke Doi (Kurosaki Harima) - 2:06:54 (5th, Osaka 2024)

Derese Workneh (Ethiopia/Hiramatsu Byoin) - 2:07:46 (5th, Beppu-Oita 2025)

Yuta Koyama (Toenec) - 2:07:57 (17th, Osaka 2023)

Bedan Karoki (Kenya/Toyota) - 2:07:59 (16th, Tokyo 2024)

Patrick Mathenge (Kenya/NTT Nishi Nihon) - 2:08:28 (3rd, Fukuoka Int'l 2024)

Daiji Kawai (Toenec) - 2:08:32 (25th, Osaka 2023)

Yuki Kawauchi (ANDS) - 2:08:32 (1st, Hofu 2023)

Ryoma Takeuchi (ND Software) - 2:08:38 (3rd, Gold Coast 2025)

Masatoshi Sakata (NTN) - 2:09:08 (22nd, Osaka 2025)

Hidekazu Hijikata (Asahi Kasei) - 2:09:10 (19th, Osaka 2024)

Masashi Nonaka (Toyota) - 2:09:11 (20th, Osaka 2024)

Takayuki Iida (Fujitsu) - 2:09:34 (5th, Prague 2023)

Kazuki Muramoto (Sumitomo Denko) - 2:09:41 (13th, Beppu-Oita 2023)

Junnosuke Matsuo (NTT Nishi Nihon) - 2:10:29 (27th, Osaka 2024)

Yuki Suzuki (Kao) - 2:10:53 (42nd, Osaka 2025)

Haruka Kawamura (SDF Academy) - 2:10:57 (7th, Hofu 2023)

Takuma Takemura (SG Holdings) - 2:10:59 (3rd, Nobeoka 2025)

Koki Sato (Asahi Kasei) - 2:11:13 (1st, Nobeoka 2023)

Reo Kuniyuki (Otsuka Seiyaku) - 2:11:27 (9th, Beppu-Oita 2024)

Yoichi Ishikawa (SDF Academy) - 2:11:30 (4th, Nobeoka 2025)

Takuma Kumagai (Sumitomo Denko) - 2:11:40 (48th, Osaka 2025)

Takeshi Nishida (Toyota) - 2:11:41 (6th, Nobeoka 2024)

Women

Ayumi Morita (Tokyo Metro) - 2:31:38 (10th, Tokyo 2024)

Nagisa Goda (GRlab Kanto) - 2:42:31 (26th, Tokyo 2023)

Hodoka Shimizu (GRlab) - 2:42:58 (30th, Tokyo 2025)

Hisae Yoshimatsu (Shunan City Hall) - 2:46:15 (4th, Beppu-Oita 2025)

Mizuki Nishimura (Tenmaya) - 1:41:42 (1st, Kumanichi 30k 2025)

Federation Tells World Championships Marathoner Horibata To Go On Diet

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Kawauchi Wins Inaugural Kawauchi Half Marathon

http://www.minyu-net.com/sports/running/FM20160501-070419.php translated by Brett Larner 川内優輝ロード pic.twitter.com/rEJk7CQPFV — みとっぽ (黒) (@mitoppo_tmyk) April 30, 2016 Yuki Kawauchi Road in Kawauchi, Fukushima Held to inspire former residents to return to the area after the nearby TEPCO Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant accident five years ago, the village of Kawauchi held the first " Kawauchi no Sato Kaeru Half Marathon - From Reconstruction to Creation " on April 30. The course started and finished at the village heliport. 1188 runners from across the country gathered to celebrate the village's revival as they ran through its springtime streets. The event's organizing committee was made up of local government and board of education members with support from the Fukushima Minyu Newspaper and other sponsors. The race's purpose was to transmit the vitality and charm of the reconstructing Kawauchi village to the rest of the nation in hopes of helpin...

A Record-Breaking 22 High School Boys Under 14 Minutes for 5000 m This Season

As we saw with multiple national records at last Friday's long distance National Championships , the Japanese distance world keeps getting faster and faster. High school athletes are no exception. Breaking 14 minutes for 5000 m is the gold standard for a top-level high school runner. This season 22 boys have done it not including foreign student athletes, almost double the previous record for a single season, 12 in 2010. In 2010, Kenta Murayama , now part of the Asahi Kasei corporate team but then running for Miyagi's Meisei H.S., was the fastest high schooler at 13:49.45. Future Tokyo Olympics marathon trials winner Shogo Nakamura ran 13:50.38 that year while at Iga Hakuho H.S. Since then the number of boys under 14 minutes has held steady, with 10 in 2015, 10 in 2016 and 11 in 2019, showing how exceptional this season's number is. Leading this new generation is Tokyo Nogyo Daini H.S. 3rd-year Kosuke Ishida . While at Fukuoka's Asakawa J.H.S. Ishida ran 3:49.72 for 1...

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