After a great season so far that has included a win on the New Year Ekiden First Stage in January and a 1:00:58 PB at the National Corporate Half in February, Shumpei Tomita (Logisteed) added another one with a 1:00:52 CR for the win at the China Airlines Gold Coast Half Marathon.
Pacer James Hansen and 2-time winner Brett Robinson went out fast, with Australian 10 km NR holder Sam Clifford and Chuo University student Daichi Fujita closing it up to make a lead quartet that hit 5 km in 14:12. Clifford soon dropped off, and when Hansen stepped off at 10 km in 28:44 it was down to just Robinson and Fujita. Fujita, who came into the race with only a 1:03:57 best, couldn't hang with the more experienced Robinson and faded, although to his credit he hung on for a new PB of 1:02:55 in 12th.
Robinson looked like he had a 3rd title down, but by 15 km, hit in 43:33, he'd been run down by the front end of the chase pack, Tomita, veteran Kazuto Kawabata and debuting Australian Ed Marks, who won the 10 km at May's Launceston Half in 27:57. Kawabata couldn't hang with the other two and dropped, leaving Tomita and Marks to battle all the way to the sharp lefthand turn into the finish area in the last km. Tomita surged there and pulled away for the win in a 1:00:52 CR and PB, Marks just 5 seconds back in 1:00:57, and Kawabata another 19 seconds back for 3rd in 1:01:16.
Launceston Half women's winner Isobel Batt-Doyle ran just about the entire race embedded deep inside a large pack of amateur men, soloing the 2nd-fastest time of her career with a 1:07:29 for the win, clocking the fastest time ever by an Australian on Australian soil. In her first half marathon since 2022 women-only NR holder Rino Goshima had a good comeback race with a 1:08:50 for 2nd, with Launceston 10 km winner Caitlin Scott 3rd in a PB 1:09:08. 3 other Japanese women, Sayaka Sato, Risa Yamazaki and Rie Kawauchi, broke 70 minutes.
The Southern Cross University 10 km was mostly a domestic race, with Liam Cashin taking the men's title in 29:28 and Natalie Rule the women's in 32:57.
China Airlines Half Marathon
Gold Coast, Australia, 4 July 2026
Men
1. Shumpei Tomita (Japan) - 1:00:52 - CR, PB
2. Ed Marks (Australia) - 1:00:57 - debut
3. Kazuto Kawabata (Japan) - 1:01:16 - PB
4. Brett Robinson (Australia) - 1:01:36
5. Daisuke Sato (Japan) - 1:01:37
6. Liam Boudin (Australia) - 1:01:37
7. Takuma Takemura (Japan) - 1:01:43 - PB
8. Neo Namiki (Japan) - 1:01:46
9. Tatsuya Kiyama (Japan) - 1:01:47 - PB
10. Shin Kimura (Japan) - 1:01:51 - PB
11. Hideto Yamanaka (Japan) - 1:02:29
12. Daichi Fujita (Japan) - 1:02:55 - PB
13. Jaewoo Park (South Korea) - 1:03:00 - PB
14. Toby Gualter (New Zealand) - 1:03:01 - PB
15. Takayuki Matsuura (Japan) - 1:03:06
Women
1. Isobel Batt-Doyle (Australia) - 1:07:29
2. Rino Goshima (Japan) - 1:08:50
3. Caitlin Scott (Australia) - 1:09:08 - PB
4. Sayaka Sato (Japan) - 1:09:14
5. Georgie Grgec (New Zealand) - 1:09:34
6. Risa Yamazaki (Japan) - 1:09:35
7. Rie Kawauchi (Japan) - 1:09:40 - PB
8. Seira Fuwa (Japan) - 1:10:53
9. Ruby Smee (Australia) - 1:11:24 - debut
10. Ellie Pashley (Australia) - 1:11:42
11. Mayu Nishikawa (Japan) - 1:11:49
12. Shiho Tachizako (Japan) - 1:11:53
13. Rebecca Lowe (Australia) - 1:12:28 - PB
14. Donve Viljoen (Australia) - 1:12:31 - PB
15. Laura Nagel (New Zealand) - 1:12:35 - PB
Men's 10 km
1. Liam Cashin (Australia) - 29:28
2. Callum Davies (Australia) - 29:31
3. Matthew Buckell (Australia) - 29:32
4. Jordan Skelly (Great Britain) - 29:34
5. Brayden Noonan (Australia) - 29:47
Women's 10 km
1. Natalie Rule (Australia) - 32:57
2. Georgia Hansen (Australia) - 33:04
3. Amy Robinson (Australia) - 33:32
4. Sinead Diver (Australia) - 33:51
5. Kate Spencer (Australia) - 33:57
© 2026 Brett Larner, all rights reserved
Comments
Regarding the women's field, Izzy Batt-Doyle did the expected and maintained her excellent form and results this year. Nice run by Rino Goshima to finish 2nd. I was happy to see that. Very impressed with Risa Yamazaki who is definitely one to watch and is improving very well this year on what was a solid start professionally last year. I can see her easily making MGC qualification if she elects to run the marathon. Very good result for Sayaka Sato in her build up to the Asian Games marathon. There is a still a glimmer of hope for Seira Fuwa with this result. MGC qualification might be possible but it is very much in the balance. It was a great event in near perfect conditions. I'm a bit surprised some Japanese female athletes did not try to hit the MGC qualification standard in the full marathon seeing at it is such a fast course and the conditions are close to ideal. They could have done what Ai Hosoda did last year at the Sydney marathon which is much more difficult course to run.