Skip to main content

Asahi Kuroda Named Hakone Ekiden MVP

 

Following Aoyama Gakuin University's scoring its second Hakone Ekiden threepeat, 4th-year Asahi Kuroda was awarded Hakone's MVP and Kanakuri Cup. The MVP award goes to the runner who made the biggest individual contribution to the winning team's success, with the Kanakuri Cup going to the outstanding overall individual performance of the race, as decided by a vote among coaches of the teams at this year's race.

On the first day of the Hakone Ekiden on Jan. 2, Kuroda set a new CR of 1:07:16 on the 20.8 km Fifth Stage, which rises from near sea level to a peak elevation of 874 m before dropping to finish at 731 m. His incredible time took 1:55 off the 1:09:11 CR set just a year earlier by his former Aoyama Gakuin teammate Hiroki Wakabayashi and catapulted Aoyama Gakuin from 5th place into the lead, breaking its own Day One CR and setting it up to front run the second day to the overall win.

"I've never gotten the MVP award before, and that was one thing I really wanted," Kuroda said. "I'm really happy to get both. It wasn't something I achieved my own, and I want to thank everyone, including my teammates, coach, and all the other team staff, for helping me make it possible."

Last year Aoyama Gakuin's Akimu Nomura was also awarded both distinctions after breaking the CR on the downhill Sixth Stage.


Labels:

Comments

Anonymous said…
Super deserved award for a legendary stage run.

Will be a star at the corporate and marathon level.
January 5, 2026 at 8:44 AM
Anonymous said…
Follow up to my previous comment and the article: I read that Kuroda if in good conditions may run the Beppu Oita marathon in a few weeks. Brett, do you think it's a reasonable choice or should have been better to go Osaka again hoping for more favorable conditions than last time (and with a likely better field). I think the guy has NR potential right away in the marathon in a good weather and good pacers. Does Beppu have enough of those?
January 8, 2026 at 2:46 AM
Brett Larner said…
I don't really see him getting the NR in Beppu-Oita, but I would guess the primary goal is getting his MGC qualification sealed up.
January 9, 2026 at 9:56 AM
Anonymous said…
Thanks for your answer!
January 10, 2026 at 12:04 AM
Post a Comment

Most-Read This Week

Tokyo Marathon Preview

The Tokyo Marathon kicks off the 2026 Abbott World Marathon Majors this Sunday. The forecast is looking pretty good, maybe a bit on the warm side but not like last year or even last weekend in Osaka , and with quality fields in all 4 races there's a decent chance we'll see some fast times on Tokyo's borderline record-eligible downhill course. As usual, JRN's Brett Larner will host Nippon TV's international broadcast on local affiliates in 115 countries worldwide starting at 9:00 a.m. local time Sunday. Details on where to watch the broadcast here . A live leaderboard will be posted here on race morning. In the wheelchair races Switzerland's Catherine Debrunner and Japan's Tomoki Suzuki both broke the Tokyo course records last year and are back for more this year. Debrunner could get a race out of British athlete Eden Rainbow-Cooper who she beat by just 1 second in Berlin 3 years ago, and if they go the whole way there could be another new CR. Suzuki w...
2 comments
Read more

2026 Tokyo Marathon Elite Field

The Mar. 1 Tokyo Marathon has great fields this year, so let's get right to it. The women's field has 3 of last year's top 10, winner for the 2nd year in a row and Tokyo CR holder Sutume Asefa Kebede , 3rd-placer and 2025 Chicago winner Hawi Feysa , and 5th-placer and 2025 Berlin winner Rosemary Wanjiru , plus 2024 Valencia winner Megertu Alemu , 2025 Prague winner Bertukan Welde , 2024 Paris winner Mestawut Fikir , 2024 Osaka winner Waganesh Mekasha , former WR holder Brigid Kosgei , and a lot more. Japanese hopes pretty much go to all-time #7 Ai Hosoda , 2:20:31 in Berlin 2024 but who announced this month that she is retiring after Tokyo despite having qualified for the 2028 Olympic marathon trials with her 2:23:27 for 6th in Sydney last year. Other internationals include Canadian Malindi Elmore , American Sara Hall , a big Chinese group led by Yuyu Xia , Poland's Aleksandra Brzezińska and Australian Vanessa Wilson . The men's race has 5 of last year's top 1...
4 comments
Read more

Hassan Runs NR/CR for Osaka Win, Dibaba Hits Women's CR, Yoshida and Shuley Earn Legends

This was maybe the most entertaining marathon in years. After rocking the 2nd leg at last year's Hakone Ekiden Hibiki Yoshida (Sunbelx) ran an incredible 1:01:01 CR for the 21.9 km New Year Ekiden 2nd leg last month, equivalent to a 58:47 half marathon. That predicted a 2:03:27 marathon if he ever ran one, and when Yoshida announced he was debuting at this year's Osaka Marathon he wasted no time in saying it'd be a shot at the 2:04:55 NR. Things went out fast enough with a 14:50 split through 5 km, 2:05:11 pace, but Yoshida just couldn't hold back and took off at 8 km. He clearly DGAF about what was probably going to happen as his projected finish kept getting faster, 2:04:41, 2:04:15, 2:03:51, 2:03:40, edging closer and closer to what his New Year time predicted, but not helped along by the fact that he missed 4 out of his first 5 drink bottles. People laughed, and then cheered him on. 30 km was the first time he slowed, his finish projection dropping to 2:03:53, an...
4 comments
Read more