Updates on Transfers

April 1 is the start of Japan's new academic and fiscal year, and there's always a wave of transfer announcements to go with it. Some notable ones yesterday:

800 m NR holder Rin Kubo skipped university to go straight to 2023 Queens Ekiden national champion Sekisui Kagaku after her graduation from Higashi Osaka Keiai H.S.
Multiple NR holder Nozomi Tanaka rejoined the Toyota Jidoshokki women's team after having left it to pursue a solo pro career as a New Balance athlete.
Already on the team for this fall's Nagoya Asian Games in the 10000 m, Ririka Hironaka announced a switch from her longtime home at Japan Post to the Uniqlo women's team.
Collegiate marathon record holder Asahi Kuroda joined the 2026 national champion GMO corporate team after graduating from 2026 Hakone Ekiden champ Aoyama Gakuin University last week.
Hakone Ekdien First Stage CR holder Rui Aoki joins the Sumitomo Denko corporate team after running his final race for 2025 Izumo Ekiden winner Koku Gakuin University at last month's United Airlines NYC Half.
Hakone Ekiden Second Stage CR holder Victor Kimutai joined the SID Group corporate team after his graduation from Josai University.
Two-time Hakone Ekiden stage winner Shunsuke Yoshii follows his older brother Yamato Yoshii in going from Chuo University to the Toyota corporate team.
Last year's top Japanese high jumper at 2.33 m, Yuto Seko joins the Yamada Holdings corporate team.
2025 World University Games half marathon silver medalist Makoto Tsuchiya of 2024 national champion Ritsumeikan University joined the Daihatsu corporate women's team.
2025 Hakone Ekiden Ninth Stage winner Yuga Sakurai of Josai University joined the Kraftia team headed by last year's Berlin marathon runner-up Akira Akasaki.
2025 Kanto Regionals men's 1500 m winner Takumi Shiobara and 2024 National University Track and Field Championships men's 800 m champion Shuta Azuma have joined the Fujisan GX corporate team.
A Paris Olympian in the 4x100 m while still at Toyo University, Hiroki Yanagita becomes the first sprinter at the Honda corporate team in 43 years.
Paris Olympics women's 10000 m team member Yuka Takashima left the Shiseido corporate team, her new home yet to be announced.
2022 World U20 Championships women's hammer throw bronze medalist and last year's national champion Raika Murakami heads to the Zenrin corporate team.
A 27:54.06 runner for 10000 m at Waseda University, Yuhi Nakaya has retired at 26 to become assistant coach back home at Saku Chosei H.S.
2021 Tokyo Olympics men's marathon team member Shogo Nakamura took over as head coach at Meiji Gakuin University.
2021 Tokyo Olympics men's marathon team alternate Ryo Hashimoto was named assistant coach at his alma mater Aoyama Gakuin University after retiring from GMO.
Assistant coach Noriaki Nishide took over as head coach at 2019 Hakone Ekiden winner Tokai University, with previous head coach Hayashi Morozumi stepping back to focus on scouting and recruitment.
2019 men's 3000 mSC national champion and Tokai alumnus Ryohei Sakaguchi announced that he has ended his relationship with On and will continue competing in a TBA new environment.
2015 Asian Games 1500 m silver medalist Maya Iino became assistant coach of the women's long distance team at her alma mater Tokyo Nogyo University.
Having retired from the Chuo Hatsujo corporate team after last month's Tokyo Marathon, 2014 Hakone Ekiden MVP Kento Otsu was named assistant coach at Rikkyo University.
Takahisa Hakozaki, head coach of 2013 National High School Ekiden boys' winner Yamanashi Gakuin H.S., became head coach of 2020-21 National High School Ekiden winner Sera H.S.

CR Holder Teruki Shimada Returns to Launceston Half - Preview and Streaming

Last year's McGrath Launceston Running Festival Peppers Silo Half Marathon in Tasmania, Australia shaped out into a great Australia vs. Japan dual meet , with Jessica Stenson outrunning Yumi Yoshikawa to take the women's title in a 1:09:51 CR, and Teikyo University school record holder Teruki Shimada executing a tactically brilliant race to drop Isaac Heyne , then-NR holder Brett Robinson , and Teikyo teammate Jinya Ozaki for the win in 1:01:12, just a second off the Australian all-comers record. Marathon NR holder Andy Buchanan took that record down to 1:01:08 at the Gold Coast Half a month later, but its chances of surviving this weekend aren't looking good. Shimada leads last year's top 4 back to Launceston this year, and there's a lot of tough new competition. 2025 National Corporate Half winner Tsubasa Ichiyama , Australia's Haftu Strintzos , new Teikyo record holder Yuta Asakawa and American Ethan Shuley have all run faster that Buchanan's rec...

Ayaka Suzuki, Younger Sister of Olympic Marathoner Yuka Suzuki, Faces Final East Japan Women's Ekiden

The final edition of the East Japan Women's Ekiden takes place Nov. 10. 18 teams representing the eastern prefectures will bring high-level women's competition to the streets of Fukushima. Getting attention on the Akita team is Ayaka Suzuki , the younger sister of Paris Olympics marathon 6th-placer Yuka Suzuki . Ayaka is a 3rd-year at Akita's Omagari H.S. She began running seriously after entering high school, citing her sister's influence. "When I saw her winning her stages and helping her team in university ekidens, I thought that I might be able to do the same and decided to give it a try," she said. Before her excellent run at the Paris Olympics Yuka ran the East Japan Women's Ekiden 3 times, inspiring others as she went from a young athlete to one of the best in the world. "I was surprised that she was competitive at that level," said Ayaka. "When I saw how strong she was running it really moved me." In junior high school Ayaka w...

Weekend Track and Road Update

Kanto Regionals were the big domestic meet this weekend, but there were other important results here and overseas. At the Xiamen Diamond League meet: 110 mH NR holder Rachid Muratake (JAL) was 2nd in 13.13 (+0.5) behind winner Jamal Britt (U.S.A.) in 13.07. The only other Japanese athlete in Xiamen, women's javelin throw NR holder Haruka Kitaguchi (JAL) was 7th at 60.08, down from her performance last week at the Seiko Golden Grand Prix Meet in Tokyo and eclipsed by the brilliant all-time #2 71.74 m throw by China's Ziyi Yan . 4 Japanese athletes ran at the Sound Running L.A,.Track Fest meet, 3 of them graduates of Kyoto's Rakunan H.S. like Kanto Regionals D1 men's 5000 m winner Kaisei Okada (Chuo Univ.). The only non-Rakunan guy there, Hibiki Obara (GMO) ran only 8:33.21 for 9th in the men's 3000 mSC A-heat. Daichi Shibata (Chuo Univ.) was last in the same heat in 8:49.91. Itta Tameike (SG Holdings) had a great run in the men's 5000 m B-heat, breakin...

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