Strintzos Breaks Australian NR at Gold Coast Marathon

Fresh off a 1:00:41 Australian all-comers record at the Launceston Half at the end of May, Haftu Strintzos lived up to the potential he showed there with a negative split 2:06:20 Australian NR and CR to win the ASICS Gold Coast Marathon.

Post-race Strintzos was quick to give credit to the expert pacing trio of 2:06:00 runner Tsubasa Ichiyama, who paced Yuki Takei's 2:07:33 CR last year, 2:07:14 American Ethan Shuley, and 2:07:34 runner Shinsaku Kudo who paced Gold Coast 2 years ago. The trio kept things going slightly hotter than the 3:01 target pace, on track for 2:06:50 most of the way. Ichiyama stopped at 25 km and Kudo at 30 km, and at that point it was down to Strintzos, 2:06:26 runner Hidekazu Hijikata, and the debuting Jinya Ozaki.

Shuley was tasked with going to 30 km but, critically, kept it going for another 2 km over the only significant hill on the Gold Coast course. Just as Strintzos did in Launceston, when Shuley stepped off at 32 km Strintzos got to work, splitting 14:33 between 30 and 35 km to kill off both Ozaki and Hijikata. From there it was a one-man show, Strintzos digging deep after 40 km to clear Andy Buchanan's NR by just 2 seconds with a 5-minute+ PB and 1:13 CR 2:06:20 for the win. His victory made him the first Australian to win the Gold Coast since Lee Troop way back in 2006.

Hijikata held on to 2nd in 2:07:20, the 2nd-best time of his career, with Ozaki clocking a quality 2:07:48 in his first marathon. Japanese athletes took 5 of the next 7 spots, with PBs from Ryoma Takeuchi, Kaisei Sugiyama, Naoki Tomita and Ryuichi Yoshioka. Benson Tunyo Murkomen was the only one of the 5 invited African marathoners to finish the race, 6th in 2:09:18, while American Patrick Cullen rounded out the top 10 with a 2:12:15 PB.

In the early going the women's race featured 2 Kenyans, 2 Ethiopians and 2 Japanese athletes, with the Australian leaders holding back with Mongolian Khishigsaikhan Galbadrakh. Steady on mid-2:23 pace, the lead group shook down to 20-year-old Almaz Kebebe, Antonina Kwambai, and Kaede Kawamura before Kebebe broke away.

Where Strintzos was able to split 1:03:30/1:02:50, Kebebe struggled to hold onto the projected finish time after the pacers stopped, going 1:11:59/1:12:54 to win just off the CR in 2:24:53. Kwambai was 2nd in 2:25:41 and Kawamura 3rd in 2:28:00 to make it an evenly international podium. Abigail Nordberg was the top Australian at 4th in a 2:30:22 PB.

ASICS Gold Coast Marathon

Gold Coast, Australia, 5 July 2026

complete results

Men

1. Haftu Strintzos (Australia) - 2:06:20 - NR, CR

2. Hidekazu Hijikata (Japan) - 2:07:20

3. Jinya Ozaki (Japan) - 2:07:48 - debut

4. Ryoma Takeuchi (Japan) - 2:08:20 - PB

5. Kaisei Sugiyama (Japan) - 2:09:03 - PB

6. Benson Tunyo Murkomen (Kenya) - 2:09:18

7. Naoki Tomita (Japan) - 2:09:28 - PB

8. Ryuichi Hashimoto (Japan) - 2:10:18

9. Ryuichi Yoshioka (Japan) - 2:10:26 - PB

10. Patrick Cullen (U.S.A.) - 2:12:15 - PB

11. Mizuki Higashi (Japan) - 2:12:48

12. Sydney Gidabuday (U.S.A.) - 2:12:49 - PB

13. Ilham Tanui Ozbilen (Turkey) - 2:13:09

14. Hiromasa Kumahashi (Japan) - 2:13:39

15. Tomohiro Kaijo (Japan) - 2:15:11 - PB

-----

DNF - Dominic Ngeno (Kenya)

DNF - Enyew Nigat (Ethiopia)

DNF - Elisha Rotich (Kenya)

DNF - Abayneh Degu Tsehay (Ethiopia)

Women

1. Almaz Kebebe (Ethiopia) - 2:24:53

2. Antonina Kwambai (Kenya) - 2:25:41

3. Kaede Kawamura (Japan) - 2:28:00

4. Abigail Nordberg (Australia) - 2:30:22 - PB

5. Khishigsaikhan Galbadrakh (Mongolia) - 2:30:46

6. Milly Clark (Australia) - 2:31:18

7. Aika Murakami (Japan) - 2:32:32

8. Nichola Sheridan (Ireland) - 2:33:26 - PB

9. Simone McInnes (Australia) - 2:34:46

10. Riine Ringi (Estonia) - 2:36:19 - PB

11. Alexandra Lyndon (Australia) - 2:36:22 - PB

12. Danette Sheehan (Canada) - 2:37:20

13. Joyline Chemutai (Kenya) - 2:38:15 - PB

14. Natasha Richards (Australia) - 2:41:40 - PB

15. Mazie Russel (Australia) - 2:42:43

-----

DNF - Lensa Debele Jaleta (Ethiopia)

Nagoya Asian Games Test Event Canceled After Insulation Falls From Venue Ceiling

A section of insulation material fell from the ceiling of Nagoya Kinjo Futo Arena, the official venue for squash competition at September's Nagoya Asian Games. There were no injuries, but the city suspended use of the arena until its safety could be guaranteed, resulting in the cancelation of the Asian Games squash test event which was scheduled to have begun on May 14. It is not yet clear whether the arena will be usable for the Asian Games as planned. According to city officials, arena staff found that the insulation material had fallen onto a work walkway 13 m above the ground on the night of May 11. The fallen material was 3.6 m long, 50 cm wide and 2.5 km thick, and was found to be waterlogged. The cause of the accident is unknown, but it is possible that it was caused by rainwater leaking in from the roof. The same insulation material is installed across the entire ceiling, and the city plans to check for the extent of the possible flooding. Asked whether the arena will be re...

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