japan running news

There was a lot of action on the track over Japan's Golden Week holidays. Highlights: Shizuoka International Meet - Fukuroi, 3 May Men's 800 m NR holder Ko Ochiai (Komazawa Univ.) broke his own record with a 1:43.90 win. Daigo Usuki (18 Ginko) and Gakuto Mishima (Nippatsu) both broke the NR in the T20 men's 400 m, Usuki getting the win in 49.08 and Mishima 2nd in 49.15. Lauren Bruce (New Zealand) threw a meet record 67.44 m on her final attempt in the women's hammer throw, but even her shortest throw of 64.31 m was over 3 m better than the rest of the field. Kazuki Kurokawa (Sumitomo Denko) got the men's 400 mH meet record with a 48.50 for the win. Women's 3000 mSC NR holder Miu Saito (Panasonic) won the steeple in 9:31.83, the 2nd-best time in her career so far, despite falling. 2nd through 4th all broke 10 minutes. National University Men's Ekiden Kanto Region Qualifier - Hiratsuka, 4 May The top 8 teams at November's National University Men...

2026 Hakone Ekiden champion Aoyama Gakuin University held a press conference Apr. 4 at its Sagamihara campus announcing that it was adding a women's ekiden team to its track and field program. In its first year the team has only 2 members, Nodoka Ashida of Ritsumeikan Uji H.S. , and Kairi Ikeno of Suma Gakuen H.S . The team's head coach will be Susumu Hara , who coached the AGU men to their second Hakone threepeat this year and had a hand in the GMO corporate team's first-ever New Year Ekiden win. At the press conference he talked about the reasons for launching a women's team, and the harsh realities facing women's track and field. AGU is the undisputed leader in the evolution of the university men's ekiden circuit, but adding a women's team represents a new challenge. Hara cited 3 objectives in expanding the AGU program: "creating an environment where female athletes can balance competition and life events," "expanding the opportunities...

We've been in transit back from NYC, where Komazawa University  2nd-year Shunsuke Kuwata turned in t he fastest-ever half marathon by a Japanese man outside Japan , and are catching up on a busy weekend in Japan and elsewhere. Saturday saw 2 new records and 2 international medals. At the rebranded Fukuoka Ohori Road Running race, Ojiro Honda (Tottori Johoku H.S.) took 1 second off the NR in the men's road mile, coming up just short of a sub-4 in 4:00.2. Laura Nicholson (Ireland) won the women's mile in 4:44 by 3 seconds over Yuzu Nishide (Daihatsu). Caroline Kariba (Japan Post) had a big win in the women's 5 km, outrunning the more accomplished Medina Eisa (Ethiopia) and Margaret Akidor (Comodi Iida) to win in 15:15 with Medina 2nd in 15:20 and Akidor 3rd in 15:33. Marathoner Mao Uesugi (Tokyo Metro) was the top Japanese finisher at 4th in 16:11. Kio Furuhashi (Surugadai Univ.) took the men's 5 km in 13:45 by 2 seconds over steepler Ryoma Aoki (Honda), 2n...

It looked like it was going to be a big weekend, and it delivered. For the 3rd time in his career Suguru Osako broke the men's marathon NR, running 1 second under the standing record to take 4th in the Valencia Marathon in 2:04:55. All the way to 40 km he was steady on 2:58/km, 2:05:10 pace, and like a surprising number of other people in both the men's and women's races, there was a massive jump over the last 2.195 km from his projected finish time to his actual one. His run put Osako back on top of the Japanese charts, put the average of Japan's 10 fastest marathon times of the year under 2:06 for the first time, and got him into the L.A. Olympics marathon trials. Valencia has been trying to get top-tier Japanese athletes to come for years, and now that they finally managed to do it it paid off in a big way. Expect more next year. Back home, former Takushoku University captain Derese Workneh won a 3-way race against Toyota teammates Kazuya Nishiyama and Bedan Ka...

After last weekend's massive total of 53 people sub-28 for 10000 m at the Hachioji Long Distance and MARCH Taikosen meets , another 17 did it Saturday in the A-heat at the last full Nittai University Time Trials meet of the year. After multiple heats saw winning times under 28:10, Amos Bett (Tokyo Kokusai Univ.) led the 16th heat with a  27:44.02 PB, just beating Emmanuel Yegon (Subaru) who was 2nd in 27:44.23. The next 3 were all in 27:45, the top Japanese finisher being Tatsuya Iyoda (Fujitsu) in 27:45.72 for 5th. A total of 9 Japanese men broke 28 minutes, with former Tokai University runner Shotaro Ishihara (SGH) making a corporate league breakthrough in 27:53.19 for 11th. Nittai's Ryuto Hirashima ran a school record 27:56.84 for 13th to add to the school records at Aoyama Gakuin University , Chuo University , Koku Gakuin University and Rikkyo University last weekend. Out of the 20 university teams set to run January's Hakone Ekiden, 13 now have at least one cu...

5th last year, Edion led almost start to finish to win its first-ever national title at the Queens Ekiden corporate women's national championship race Sunday in Sendai. Its lead-off runner Kana Mizumoto opened up a 16-second lead that it held until the 4th leg, when the talented Caroline Kariba from 2024 winner Japan Post ran down Edion's Saya Nakajima . It's hard to fault Nakajima, who was still the fastest Japanese woman on that leg, and in any case Edion's 5th runner Ai Hosoda , 6th at August's Sydney Marathon, caught Japan Post's Kotoka Ota late in the 10.0 km leg to put Edion out front again by 7 seconds. Both Edion anchor Miho Hiraoka and Japan Post's Mao Kogure ran identical times for the 6.795 km 6th leg, 21:24, Hiraoka bringing Edion in to its first-ever win in 2:13:50. It had to have been frustrating for Kogure, who just couldn't close the gap and had to accept 2nd in 2:13:57. 2023 winner Sekisui Kagaku was almost a minute back in 3rd...

Conditions were too hot at this season's last Hokuren Distance Challenge meet Saturday in Abashiri for many really good performances, but there were a few, mostly by Japan-based Kenyans. In the men's 10000 m A-heat collegiate record holder Richard Etir (Tokyo Kokusai Univ,) soloed a 27:37.85 for the win by almost 23 seconds, the only man to get under 28 minutes. Caroline Kariba (Japan Post) did the same in the women's 10000 m with a 31:02.70 PB for the win. Dolphine Omare (Uniqlo) and Rika Kaseda (Daihatsu) both made it under 32, Omare running 31:29.35 and Kaseda 31:42.92. 2025 national 5000 m champion Ryuto Igawa (Asahi Kasei) had what was probably the best Japanese performance of the meet, running a PB 13:23.13 for the win over Antipas Kibet (Komori Corp.). Fresh off a 3:36.58 PB at the HDC Kitami meet on Wednesday, Nanami Arai (Honda) was 3rd with another PB in 13:28.42. Top-tier Hyuga Endo (Sumitomo Denko) was one of the day's many DNFs. Stephen Muthini (S...

Between international travel and illness we've been AWOL for a while, but it's time to catch up on what's been going on. The Hokuren Distance Challenge series rolled on with two more meets in Kitami on the 16th and Chitose on the 12th . After shaving 0.05 off the South Korean men's 1500 m NR last month at the HDC Shibetsu meet , Jae Ung Lee took the NR into new territory with a 3:36.01 win in Kitami. He was pushed all the way by Nanami Arai (Honda), who moved up to all-time Japanese #3 with a 3:36.58 for 2nd. The women's 3000 m in Kitami was fast too, with an 8:41.62 win from Caroline Kariba (Japan Post) and an all-time Japanese #5 8:48.90 PB from her injury-prone teammate Ririka Hironaka for 2nd. Margaret Ekalale (Toyota Jidoshokki) led the women's 1500 m in 4:09.64, with Na Yeon Park just missing the South Korean NR by 0.07 in 4:14.25 for 2nd. Ayano Shiomi (Iwatani Sangyo) inched back toward 2-flat to win the women's 800 m in 2:02.60, one of the f...

After tuning up with a 3:40.19 win in the men's 1500 m A-heat in Fukagawa on Wednesday , South Korean Jae Ung Lee turned in the performance of the day at the second Hokuren Distance Challenge meet in Shibetsu Saturday. Going to the front after 900 m, Lee ran a 3:38.55 for the win, just enough to achieve his goal of breaking the 1993-era Korean national record of 3:38.60 and almost 6 seconds up on nearest Japanese competitor Rikuto Iijima (Ami AC), 2nd in 3:44.27. Na Yeon Park also repeated her Fukagawa win, slightly slower this time in 4:15.58 over Rose Wangui (Daiso), 2nd in 4:16.09. Other standout performances included an 8:55.45 win in the women's 3000 m by Yvonne Jepchirchir Chepkosgei (Higo Ginko), a 7:52.11 win by Isaac Ndiema (Mazda) in the men's 3000 m, and a 14:55.45 win by Caroline Kariba (Japan Post) in the women's 5000 m. No Japanese athletes hit the qualifying standards for next month's National Championships at any distance. The next meet in t...

This year's Hokuren Distance Challenge time trial meet series is divided into parts, with the first two meets in mid-June targeting people trying to hit the qualifying standards for next month's National Championships, and the last three meets in mid-July more geared toward last-chance World Championships qualification. The first meet in Fukagawa yesterday in humid conditions was relatively low-key. Emmanuel Maru had a good solo 27:26.89 win in the men's 10000 m A-heat win, emerging from a pack of 10 out of which only 3 others got under 28 minutes, all in the mid-27:50 range. The talented Caroline Kariba had the best women's performance of the meet, winning the 3000 m by over 20 seconds in 8:51.60. There were also near-misses on the South Korea women's and men's 1500 m NR, with Na Yeon Park winning the women's race in 4:15.07 and Jae Ung Lee the men's in 3:40.19. Japanese athletes who cleared the National Championships qualifying standards : Women...

Tuesday's Oda Memorial Meet in Hiroshima was the biggest action of the holiday, with what was probably the biggest result of the day coming in the men's 3000 mSC . With an aggressive middle 1000 m and a last kick for the win, Yutaro Niinae (Aisan Kogyo) solidified his position as Japan's 2nd-best steepler with a career 2nd-best 8:25.43 to beat teammate Philemon Kiplagat by just 0.44. Niinae will represent Japan at next month's Asian Championships in Gumi, South Korea. Other meet highlights: Hitomi Nakajima (Hasegawa) and Chisato Kiyoyama (Ichigo) had breakthrough runs in the women's 100 mH final , going 1-2 in all-time Japanese #5 and #6 times of 12.93 and 12.94 (+1.8). 9 of Japan's 10 all-time best have now run their times since 2021. Tatsuki Abe (Juntendo Univ.) took the men's 110 mH final in 13.36 (+1.9). Australian Tess Kisropp-Cole set a meet record 2:02.74 to win the women's 800 m , with Ellie Sanford 2nd in 2:03.05 over 3 seconds ahead of...

The last big track time trial of the season, probably, Saturday's Edion Distance Challenge had its biggest result in its smallest event. With only 3 women on the starting line, the 3000 mSC saw Miu Saito from Nittai University move up from all-time Japanese #9 to #8 with a 9:45.62 PB that put her almost 35 seconds ahead of her closest competitor. Panasonic 's Nanami Watanabe took the women's 5000 m fast heat in 15:29.67, but a lot of the main competition, Kae Gyu from National Corporate Women's Ekiden winner Japan Post , Yuma Yamamoto , Risa Sasaki and Tomoka Kimura from runner-up Sekisui Kagaku , top-tier collegians Nanaka Yamazaki , Nanase Tanimoto and Haruka Ogawa , and others just looked tired. Only 8 women broke 16 minutes, and with 7 others going sub-16 in the B-heat better seeding might have produced better races. Some Japan Post runners did do well in the women's 10000 m fast heat, with Miyaka Sugata winning in 31:42.28 and Caroline Kariba 3rd in 3...

Nittai University still has the special annual women-only edition of its time trial series coming up Dec. 21, but Saturday's Edion Distance Challenge in Osaka is the last full-on long distance track time trial meet of the year. Streaming starts at 11:50 a.m. local time and will show all 13 races, mostly heats of women's 3000 m, 3000 mSC, 5000 m and 10000 m with four heats of men's 5000 m near the beginning. The meet schedule and live results can be had her e, with entry lists here . The first race of the day, the women's 3000 mSC at 12:00, only has 3 entrants, but all-time Japanese #9 Miu Saito from Nittai is among them. The men's 5000 m fast heat at 15:35 is led by Toyota 's 13:07.99 man Felix Korir , with recent sub-13:30 men Cosmas Mwangi , Ryuto Igawa and Nganga Waweru at the top of the list. The women's 5000 m fast heat at 16:00 has a lot of good names, including sub-15 Kenyans Margaret Akidor and Tabitha Njeri Kamau , Kae Gyu from the national c...

  Japan Post  was back on top at the Queens Ekiden corporate women's national championships Sunday in Sendai, holding off last year's winner Sekisui Kagaku  over the second half of a race that came as close as 1 second to take 1st with a final margin of victory of 27 seconds. Sekisui Kagaku was out fast with a win on the 7.0 km opening leg by Erika Tanoura  and a new CR for the 12:56 second leg by Yuma Yamamoto , 17 seconds better than her own CR from last year. Last year's 4th-placer Shiseido  briefly led on the 10.6 km third leg with an excellent 33:17 stage win from Rino Goshima , but behind her Japan Post's Ririka Hironaka  returned from her latest injury problems to pass Sekisui Kagaku's Sayaka Sato  and hand off 6 seconds ahead. New recruit Caroline Kariba  ran Shiseido down on the 3.6 km fourth leg and put Japan Post 22 seconds ahead of Sekisui Kagaku, but a duel of marathoners between JP's  Ayuko Suzuki  and Sekisui's Hitomi Niiy...

Start lists are up for this weekend's Yogibo Athletics Challenge Cup Continental Tour Bronze meet in Niigata with scratches and a few additions since the initial entry list announcement two weeks ago. Prominent withdrawals include women's long jump NR holder Sumire Hata , former men's 100 m NR holder Yoshihide Kiryu , men's indoor 5000 m NR holder Keita Sato , and Paris Olympians Ryuichiro Sakai , Tomoki Ota , Ryoichi Akamatsu , and Wakana Kabasawa . Indian men's 5000 m NR holder Gulveer Singh has joined the 5000 m field in pursuit of a new NR. Times listed below are athletes' 2023-2024 best in each event. Streaming of day one of the meet starts at 14:30 Saturday, with day two starting at 10:00 a.m. Sunday. Live results are here . Men's 100 m Shuhei Tada (Sumitomo Denko) - 10.10 Naoki Nishioka (Tokai Gyosei H.S.) - 10.11 Yuki Koike (Sumitomo Denko) - 10.11 Ryo Wada (Miki House) - 10.13 Shoto Uno (Orico) - 10.16 Kuk Young Kim (South Korea) - 10.25 Kenji Ma...

The Sept. 28-29 Yogibo Athletics Challenge Cup Continental Tour Bronze meet in Niigata announced its preliminary field on Wednesday. A lot of the international field has yet to be added, but what's been announced includes Paris Olympians Yoshihide Kiryu , Ryuichiro Sakai , Kentaro Sato , Fuga Sato , Joseph Nakajima , Abraham Guem , Tomoki Ota , Rachid Muratake , Daiki Ogawa , Ryoichi Akamatsu , Tomohiro Shinno , Yume Goto , Wakana Kabasawa , Haruki Kokai , Sumire Hata , Marina Saito and Momone Ueda , NR holders Shuhei Tada , Ko Ochiai , Sho Kawamoto , Keita Sato , Naoto Tobe , Yuji Tsutumi , Ryoji Tatezawa , Kanta Shimizu , Kotaro Shinohara , Rin Kubo , Tomoka Kimura and Nanaka Kori , Monaco Diamond League winner Margaret Akidor , and more. Current list top entries by 2023-2024 best in each event: Men's 100 m Yoshihide Kiryu (Nihon Seimei) - 10.03 Ryuichiro Sakai (Osaka Gas) - 10.08 Shuhei Tada (Sumitomo Denko) - 10.10 Naoki Nishioka (Tokai Gyosei H.S.) - 10.11 Yuki Koike (...