japan running news

The Chugoku Denryoku and Mazda men's corporate teams raced each other to new heights at the 56th Hiroshima Corporate Ekiden , each taking over two minutes off the course record Mazda set just last year. 5 of the race's 6 stages saw new records with runners from both teams breaking the record on 3 of them. Mazda's Kenji Yamamoto took an early lead on the opening stage, but on every remaining stage the two teams swapped position, Mazda never more than 13 seconds in front and Chugoku Denryoku never more than 28.  Chugoku Denryoku anchor Kaido Kita was down 13 seconds when he took the tasuki, but with only 5.49 km to work with he managed to turn that around and open 17 seconds on Mazda anchor Shori Arai after catching him. Mazda's record for the 43.82 km course was 2:08:10. This year Chugoku Denryoku won in 2:05:52 with Mazda running 2:06:09. 3rd-placer Chudenko was also just off the record at 2:08:20, briefly taking the lead on the Second Stage thanks to a stage ...

Valencia, Spain, 10/18/15 click here for complete results Women 1. Netsanet Gudeta Kebede (Ethiopia) - 1:07:31 2. Worknesh Degefa Debele (Ethiopia) - 1:07:51 3. Genet Yalew Kassahun (Ethiopia) - 1:08:12 4. Rose Chelimo (Kenya) - 1:08:54 5. Peninah Jerop (Kenya) - 1:10:08 ----- 8. Mao Kiyota (Japan/Suzuki Hamamatsu AC) - 1:10:31 Men 1. Abraham Nambei Cheroben (Kenya) - 59:10 2. Matthew Kipkoech Kisorio (Kenya) - 59:52 3. Dawit Weldeslasie Hagos (Eritrea) - 1:00:26 4. Hiskel Tewelde Gebru (Eritrea) - 1:00:31 5. Simon Cheprot (Kenya) - 1:00:56 ----- 21. Kaido Kita (Japan/Chugoku Denryoku) - 1:05:19 26. Yuji Osuda (Japan/Mazda) - 1:06:51

by Brett Larner Eight years after it was set at on the same track, Suguru Osako (Oregon Project) and Tetsuya Yoroizaka (Team Asahi Kasei) made history at the KBC Nacht in Heusden-Zolder, Belgium, both breaking Takayuki Matsumiya 's 13:13.20 Japanese men's 5000 m national record.  For Osako it was do or die, his last chance to clear the Beijing World Championships qualifying standard of 13:23.00 after his official debut season with the Oregon Project was repeatedly hit by setbacks, not least of all the series of doping allegations against his coach Alberto Salazar .  Osako came through in a big way, running 13:08.40 for 6th, easily breaking both the NR and the Beijing standard.  10000 m national champion Yoroizaka, already on the Beijing team in the 10000 m, unexpectedly hung on to the pace and likewise cleared the record and standard in 13:12.63. After countless all-time top performances over 5000 m, 10000 m, half marathon and marathon have sent things bubbling in t...

by Brett Larner 2013 Moscow World Championships men's 10000 m bronze medalist Paul Tanui (Team Kyudenko) capped a weekend of regional corporate track and field championships with a world-leading 27:08.21 meet record at the Kyushu Championships.  Starting at near world record pace with a 2:38.38 first 1000 m Tanui soon calmed down and ran under control, going through halfway in 13:34.98 and lapping the entire field including sub-62 half marathoner Hiroto Inoue (Mitsubishi Hitachi Nagasaki) and three of the Asahi Kasei team's star new recruits, Kota Murayama , Shuho Dairokuno and Takashi Ichida . The women's 10000 m was not quite as fast but still started quick, with Misaki Kato (Team Kyudenko) and Keiko Nogami (Team Juhachi Ginko) going after the sub-32:00.00 Beijing World Championships standard.  The pace slowed off the standard but the pair ran together until the last lap when Kato pulled just ahead to win in 32:13.72. At the East Japan meet Kenyans William Male...

by Brett Larner Despite weeks of heavy rains that brought fatal landslides across the Hiroshima region, the 2014 Hiroshima Cross-Country Meet went ahead as planned under relatively good conditions.  Charles Ndirangu (Team JFE Steel), a graduate of the local Sera H.S. ekiden program that previously produced the likes of sub-27 man Bedan Karoki (DeNA RC) and 2012 Fukuoka International Marathon winner Joseph Gitau (Team JFE Steel), had an easy time adding a win to his resume, finishing more than 30 seconds up on the rest of the men's 8 km field in 24:24.  Little-known Shogo Kanezane (Team Chugoku Denryoku) outran the rest of the Japanese field for 2nd, at 24:55 the only Japanese man to go under 25 minutes. His teammate Kaido Kita filled out the podium in 25:01.  The top man from the third corporate team at the meet, Chudenko's Naoya Hashimoto , was 6th in 25:16 in the midst of the chase pack's blanket finish. 2014 Hiroshima XC Meet Men's 8 km Hiroshima, 8/23/14 ...

text and Kanto video by Brett Larner Hachioji video by B1853264 Two major time trial meets focusing on the men's 10000 m took place in Tokyo Nov. 24, the pro-oriented Hachioji Long Distance Time Trials meet in Tokyo's western suburbs, and the Kanto Region University Long Distance Time Trials meet at the National Stadium. The focus in the A-heat in Hachioji was on the 2013 World Championships A and B qualifying times of 27:40.00 and 28:05.00.  With impeccable pacing from Bitan Karoki (Kenya/Team S&B) in 14:00 through 5000 m, former Jobu University ace Yusuke Hasegawa (Team S&B), 2011 year-leader Tsuyoshi Ugachi  (Team Konica Minolta) and Kenyans Patrick Mwaka  (Team Aisan Kogyo) and  Alex Mwangi  (Team YKK) cleared the B-standard, Hasegawa going sub-60 on his final lap to deliver a 15-second PB of 27:50.64.  With outstanding conditions four other men in the top ten ran PBs of 20 to 45 seconds, led by 2012 Waseda University graduate Yusuke Mi...