japan running news

The 72nd Towada Hachimantai Ekiden took place Aug. 7 on a course linking Towadako and Hachimantai. 17 teams competed in the five-stage, 71.6 km men's race, where the Komori Corporation team scored its second-straight win in 3:50:26. The top local team, Akita T&F Assocation, was 9th. Six teams ran the five-stage, 28.1 km women's race. After getting caught on the anchor stage last year, Tohoku Fukushi University took the lead on the Second Stage and frontran the rest of the way to win its first-ever title in 1:38:31.
72nd Towada Hachimantai EkidenAkita, 8/7/19
men: 17 teams, 5 stages, 71.6 km
women: 6 teams, 5 stages, 28.1 km
complete men's results
complete women's results

Men
Top Team Results
1. Komori Corporation - 3:50:26
2. Yachiyo Kogyo - 3:52:40
3. Konica Minolta - 3:53:19
4. Tokyo Police Department - 3:55:00
5. NTN - 3:56:13

Top Individual Stage Results
First Stage (13.2 km) - Hiroto Kanamori (Komori Corp.) - 41:00
Second Stage (13.0 km) - Yuki Oshikawa (NTN) - 37:3…

by Brett Larner
videos by naoki620


Another week, another world record-setting Japanese collegiate race.

Virtually every major Japanese university men's distance race since Tokyo won the 2020 Olympic bid has seen incredible new course records and world records set for depth at quality.  Today's Hakone Ekiden Yosenkai, the 20 km road race qualifier for the season-capping January 2-3 Hakone Ekiden, was no exception.

49 schools from around the Kanto Region lined up in Tokyo's Showa Kinen Park to try to be one of the lucky 10 programs to join those who had already reserved their place at the 2016 Hakone Ekiden by finishing in the top 10 in Hakone this year.  Each of the schools at the Yosenkai qualifier fielded 10 to 12 runners with the team scored on the aggregate time of its first 10 finishers.  The 10 fastest schools go on to Hakone, clean and simple.

After heavy rain with 5 minutes to go 2015 Kanto Region DI Half Marathon champion Daniel Muiva Kitonyi (Nihon University), 2nd…