japan running news

by Brett Larner 橋本くん、優勝おめでとう！！ pic.twitter.com/Qmm0jm5ZvI — くにちゃん (@Kunie0206) December 18, 2016 In just his second marathon, 2016 Aoyama Gakuin University graduate Ryo Hashimoto (Team GMO Athletes) ran a PB of over three minutes to win the Hofu Yomiuri Marathon in 2:11:20.  Pacers took the race through 25 km at a relatively steadily pace on target for around 2:11:45.  With their departure at 26 km Yuki Kawauchi (Saitama Pref. Gov't) repeated his big play from the Fukuoka International Marathon two weeks ago, throwing in a hard surge and opening a gap of 10 seconds over the rest of the field.  Hashimoto and Taiki Yoshimura (Team Asahi Kasei) were the only two to try to follow, and by 30 km they had started to close the gap. pic.twitter.com/WnsJeY1YX9 — ペコ (@ayespeko) December 18, 2016 Hashimoto passed Kawauchi near 32 km, splitting 15:05 from 30 to 35 km as he pulled away.  It was a pace he couldn't sustain but enough to guarantee him the win with ...

by Brett Larner update: both Tewelde and Igarashi have scratched. Fresh off one of the greatest marathons of his career to date in Fukuoka last weekend, Yuki Kawauchi (Saitama Pref. Gov't) once again returns to the Dec. 18 Hofu Yomiuri Marathon for his year-ending marathon double.  With injuries to both legs before Fukuoka Kawauchi's condition is a question mark, but on paper he is the class of the field with an almost three-minute advantage over his nearest competition, the Toshinari Takaoka -coached Tomoyuki Morita (Team Kanebo).   Taiki Yoshimura (Team Asahi Kasei), coached by Takeshi Soh , and Katsuta Marathon course record-setter Shingo Igarashi (Josai Univ. Staff) are the other main domestic contenders. Perpetual pacemaker Isaac Macharia (Kenya) is listed in the field rather than as a pacer, but it has been years since Macharia has run a good marathon. That makes Rio Olympian Tsegai Tewelde (Great Britain) the top international runner in the field with a 2:...

29-year-old Jeffrey Eggleston has been quietly rising up through the ranks of U.S. marathoning for the last few years since debuting in 2:14:32 at the 2010 Rock'n'Roll Arizona Marathon. A 2:12:03 at the 2012 Chicago Marathon got him onto the Moscow World Championships team, where he was the top-placing American at 13th overall. In April he was the third American at the Boston Marathon, running his fastest time to that point at 2:11:57. On July 6 he lined up at Australia’s Gold Coast Airport Marathon. Running a race both smart and tough, he took his time working back into contact after the early move by Kenyan pacer Isaac Macharia Wanjohi and eventual winner Silah Limo that brought panic to the rest of the lead pack. At 30 km Eggleston was in 2nd on mid-2:08 pace, and with a gritty last 12 km he held on to that position as he ground out a 2:10:52 PB that made him the fastest American of the year and second-fastest since the London Olympics on an unaided course. Aft...

by Brett Larner There were no surprise upsets in the 11th edition of the Nagano Marathon on Apr. 19. Running on a new course, the fastest man in the field, Isaac Macharia (Kenya) bided his time before dropping the other leaders in the final 7 km to take his second Nagano win in 2:11:21, while the woman with the best recent time, Irina Timofeyeva (Russia), finished strong to overtake ailing Kenyan Irene Limika in the final stretch, clocking 2:30:08 for the win. Expected men's contender Masaru Takamizawa (Saku Chosei H.S.) went flat in the second half of the race, leaving the top Japanese man title to debutant Masaki Shimoju (Team Konica Minolta), 7th overall in 2:15:57. Akemi Ozaki (Second Wind AC), the older sister of 2009 World Championships team member Yoshimi Ozaki (Team Daiichi Seimei), was the top Japanese woman, 3rd overall in 2:31:18. Frontrunning the race as he did on his way to victory at last year's Hokkaido Marathon, high school coach Masaru Takamizawa took the race...

http://iaaf.org/LRR09/news/newsid=50217.html Surprisingly, there will not be a live broadcast of this year's Nagano Marathon. NHK will broadcast a one-hour highlights show on Apr. 25 at 2:00 p.m.

http://www.shinmai.co.jp/news/20090401/KT090327IWI090025000022.htm translated by Brett Larner On Mar. 31 the organizing committee of the 11th Nagano Olympics Commemorative Marathon announced the elite athletes for this year's race to be held on Apr. 19. Running Nagano for the third time, 2005 men's winner Isaac Macharia (Kenya) will be back to look for his second Nagano win, while two-time Olympic track gold medalist Derartu Tulu (Ethiopia) will lead the women's race. Tulu won the gold medal in the 10000 m at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics and the 2000 Sydney Olympics. She won the 2001 London Marathon and set her PB of 2:23:30 while finishing 4th at the 2005 World Championships in Helsinki. At 37 she is facing the effects of age but is still competitve, finishing 9th at last year's Tokyo International Women's Marathon in 2:36.47. Macharia won the 2005 edition of Nagano in 2:10:59 and took 3rd in 2006 with a time of 2:12:44. At the 2007 Dubai Marathon he was 2nd in 2:0...