Skip to main content

Yuasa and Nishimura Win Hakodate Half Marathon


The Hakodate Half Marathon and Marathon took place June 28 on a course starting and finishing at Hakodate Dotsuku Sports Garden. 4,448 people ran the half marathon, with another 3,866 in the marathon for a total participant number of 8,314. Cheered on by the crowds, runners chased PBs through the exotic atmosphere of Hakodate's streets. A record-breaking 9.271 people entered the race, 5,037 in the half marathon and 4,234 in the marathon. At the opening ceremony mayor Jun Oizumi told onlookers, "I hope that the warm cheers of our local people along the course give runners strength, and that they enjoy the race til the very end."

When the starting gun fired at 9:00 a.m. the runners rook off. True to the mayor's words, locals and official cheering squads supported them with loud cheering and performances. At Midorinoshima, a longstanding local restaurant served up curry and other dishes, giving participants a taste of Hakodate's delicious local cuisine.

Jin Yuasa (Toyota) won the men's half marathon in 1:02:05, with Mizuki Nishimura (Tenmaya) breaking the tape in 1:10:51 to take the women's title. Post-race Yuasa said, "The great crowd support from the local people was heartwarming. This win gave me a confidence boost for the Hokkaido Marathon, and I'll keep training steadily for that without getting complacent." Nishimura said, "I ran this to gauge where I am right now in my fitness. It got windy partway through and I had trouble sustaining the pace I'd planned, but it's great that I still won."

Amateur Keisuke Shimamura won the men's marathon in 2:28:00, with veteran Hiroko Yoshitomi (Memolead) winning the women's race in 2:45:23. A total of 3,001 men and 1,231 women finished the half marathon, 2,834 men and 637 women finishing the marathon. According to the Japan Meteorological Agency's Sapporo Regional Headquarters, the high temperature in Hakodate on the 28th was 25.4˚C at 2:03 p.m.

Hakodate Half Marathon

Hakodate, Hokkaido, 28 June 2026

Men's Half Marathon
1. Jin Yuasa (Toyota) - 1:02:05
2. Shoma Hosoya (Logisteed) - 1:02:12
3. Shunsuke Shikama (Logisteed) - 1:02:18
4. Brian Kiptoo (Comedy Iida) - 1:02:34
5. Masashi Nonaka (Toyota) - 1:02:36
6. Shota Nishimura (Aichi Seiko) - 1:02:38
7. Naoya Sakuda (JR Higashi Nihon) - 1:02:40
8. Yuto Akahoshi (Otsuka Seiyaku) - 1:02:41
9. Solomon Mutuku (Soka Univ.) - 1:02:43
10. Hiro Konda (Aichi Seiko) - 1:02:47
11. Akito Terui (Subaru) - 1:02:50
12. Kazuya Nishiyama (Toyota) - 1:02:57

Women's Half Marathon
1. Mizuki Nishimura (Tenmaya) - 1:10:51
2. Honami Maeda (Tenmaya) - 1:11:07
3. Hikaru Kitagawa (Univ. Ent.) - 1:13:01
4. Shiori Yoshizono (Tenmaya) - 1:13:33
5. Sakiho Tsutsui (Univ. Ent.) - 1:13:53
6. Azusa Sumi (Univ. Ent.) - 1:14:47
7. Miku Hirashima (Tenmaya) - 1:15:20

Men's Marathon
1. Keisuke Shimamura (unattached) - 2:28:00

Women's Marathon
1. Hiroko Yoshitomi (Memolead) - 2:45:23

source article:

Comments

Most-Read This Week

National University Championships Entry Lists and Streaming

The 95th National University Track and Field Championships run Friday through Monday at Nissan Stadium in Yokohama. The complete meet schedule and live results are here . The 10000 m races were already held separately earlier this season. Streaming starts at 9:00 a.m. Saturday Japan time, with separate field event channels and Day 2 and 3 streaming here . Top entries in each event with best performance in the qualifying window: Men 100 m Shoma Yamamoto (Hiroshima Univ.) - 10.04 Fukuto Komuro (Chuo Univ.) - 10.07 Naoki Nishioka (Tsukuba Univ.) - 10.09 Riku Oishi (Toyo Univ.) - 10.13 Kaito Kuroki (Chuo Univ.) - 10.14 Ryunosuke Mizuno (Waseda Univ.) - 10.14 Yugo Haitamataira (Juntendo Univ.) - 10.17 Shun Miyashita (Daito Bunka Univ.) - 10.19 200 m Akira Hayashi (Keio Univ.) - 20.36 Tomoru Funaki (Daito Bunka Univ.) - 20.39 Oma Asai (Tsukuba Univ.) - 20.47 Reishin Yamamoto (Toyo Univ.) - 20.49 Shingo Suzuki (Tokai Univ.) - 20.54 Haruto Nakamura (Fukuoka Univ.) - 20.55 400 m Shinya Hayashi...

Yuasa and Niiya Win Hokkaido Marathon, 6 Qualify for Olympic Trials

  Six more people picked up qualifying spots for next year's MGC Race at yesterday's Hokkaido Marathon in Sapporo, guaranteeing themselves places at Japan's 2028 Los Angeles Olympics marathon trials. In the men's race, Hibiki Yoshida tried to break away from the massive lead group at 30 km, opening a 25-second lead between there and 35 km before getting cut down by the chase trio of Jin Yuasa , Ken Tansho and Masato Arao . All three stayed together until the very end, Yuasa showing the same kind of closing speed he had in winning 2025 Nobeoka Nishi Nippon Marathon and pulling away to win in 2:10:46. The debuting Tansho was next in 2:10:55, with Arao, 6th at last year's Sydney Marathon in an excellent 2:07:42, 3rd here in 2:10:59. By clearing 2:12:00 all three picked up MGC qualifying spots, freeing them up to go overseas next spring. Continuing a great season, Soka University 's Shoki Yamaguchi was 4th in 2:11:47, missing out on trials qualification but bea...

Monterey Welcomes Student-Athletes from Sister City Nanao, Japan

a press release by the Monterey-Nanao Cross Country Exchange Project photos here Fourteen student-athletes from Nanao High School in Ishikawa Prefecture, Japan, recently completed a weeklong visit to the Monterey Peninsula as part of the Monterey–Nanao Cross Country Exchange Project , bringing together young people from the two Sister Cities through running, education, environmental stewardship, cultural exchange, and friendship. The seven boys and seven girls from Nanao were paired with 14 members of the Monterey High School cross country team and stayed in their homes throughout the visit. The week marked the first half of a reciprocal exchange that will continue when the Monterey students travel to Nanao later this year. The visitors received their first introduction to Monterey shortly after arriving at Monterey High School, walking with their hosts to Sister City Park and gathering for photographs beside the sign honoring Nanao — a fitting beginning for a week devoted to bringin...