japan running news

  Kogakkan University in Ise, Mie has announced that former Hakone Ekiden and corporate league runner Natsuki Terada , 31, has been named the new head coach of its ekiden program. In a statement on the university's website Terada said, "I want to prioritize effective communication with the athletes, and while cherishing the program's history I want to work together with them to build a new history. Strong athletes, not just fast athletes. I want them to become athletes that the people of Ise, of Mie, and all across the country will support and cheer on. That's the kind of team I plan to make." As a runner at Koku Gakuin University Terada ran the Hakone Ekiden all four years of his college career. As a 1st-year in 2011 he ran Hakone's anchor stage. Leading a four-way race for the last three spots in the top 10, with just 120 m to go before the finish line he turned right and followed a broadcast vehicle off the course. Dropping from 8th to 11th because of the...

At Sunday's Kyoto Time Trials meet, 1500 m and 5000 m high school record holder Keita Sato , a 17-year-old 3rd-year at Rakunan H.S. , added the 3000 m high school record to his resume with a mostly solo 7:50.81. In perfect fall conditions Sato frontran the entire way, tailed through a 2:34 first 1000 m by Kogakkan University 's Shoya Suzuki  but all on his own the rest of the way. From 1000 to 2000 m he split 2:38, more or less holding that pace the rest of the way with a 61-second final lap to split 2:38 again for the final 1000 m. In terms of World Athletics scoring tables, Sato's three records break down like this: 1500 m: 3:37.18 - 1145 points 3000 m: 7:50.81 - 1110 points 5000 m: 13:31.19 - 1098 points Sato's rankings on the all-time Japanese lists mirror this, his 1500 m putting him at all-time #3 along with #1 on the U20 and U18 lists, his new 3000 m time at #10 on the all-time list, #2 on the U20 and #1 on the U18 lists, and his 5000 m nowhere near the all-tim...

Two of Japan's best collegiate athletes broke stage records at Sunday's Tokai Region University Ekiden , a regional championship race for universities in the greater Nagoya area.  In the women's race, eight teams competed over five stages totaling 26.6 km. Four-time national champion Meijo University  tuned up for the year-ending Mt. Fuji Women's Ekiden with a win in Tokai, leading start to finish and taking four out of five stage stage bests to close out with a lead of three and a half minutes over Chukyo Gakuin University . Meijo fourth-year Rika Kaseda , the top collegiate 10000 m runner of 2020 with a PB of 31:39.86 at last weekend's National Championships , took a second off the record for the 5.9 km Third Stage, winning it in 18:10. Chukyo Gakuin first-year Yumeka Inaba  was the only runner to break up Meijo's domination, beating Meijo fourth-year Sena Komori  by 11 seconds to win the 4.7 km Fourth Stage in 17:02. Meijo's final time of 1:28:25 was ov...