japan running news

The 78th Towada Hachimantai Ekiden took place Aug. 2 in Akita and Aomori. Covering a 5-stage, 71.4 km course from Lake Towada to Hachimantai, this year's race saw the Tokyo Police Department B team out strong with a lead over the opening stages. The Comodi Iida team was back in 5th. A stage win by its second runner Brian Kiptoo moved Comodi Iida up to 2nd, but after that it fell back to 3rd, then 4th. Starting 1:32 behind anchor stage leader Chuo Hatsujo , Comodi Iida anchor Akihiro Kaneko ran brilliantly on the uphill final stage, clocking its fastest time this year to move into 1st for the win. Since it first ran the Towada Hachimantai Ekiden in 2015 it was Comodi Iida's first victory. Having changed its team from Fujisan no Meisui this season, Fujisan GX was 2nd, followed by Chuo Hatsujo and Komori Corporation . 78th Towada Hachimantai Ekiden Akita and Aomori, 2 August 2025 17 teams, 5 stages, 71.4 km complete results Top Team Results 1. Comodi Iida - 3:50:44 2. Fujisan...

38,000 people ran the 2025 Tokyo Marathon . Every runner had their own story, but one of the most special was Tsubasa Ichiyama (Sunbelx). Despite being on almost nobody's radar, he outran some of the best in the country to finish as the top Japanese man. Ichiyama ran most of the race in the 3rd pace group, going through halfway in 1:02:44 and 30 km in 1:29:13. When the pacers stopped, he showed what he could really do. "I'm not good at downhills, so in the first part it was hard to run smoothly," he said at the post-race press conference. "But after the downhill part ended I got into my rhythm, and I think that helped me over the 2nd half." After dropping Asian Games gold medalist Hiroto Inoue (Mitsubishi Juko) and others, he quickly bore down on the Japanese athletes who had gone out faster in the 2nd pace group. Overtaking Paris Olympics 6th placer Akira Akasaki (Kyudenko) and Yuhei Urano (Fujitsu), at 39.8 km he caught all-time Japanese #2 man Yohei I...

After making a post-corona return last year it time for its 75th anniversary year, the Towada Hachimantai Ekiden returned this year for its 76th. Without enough teams entered the women's race was canceled, but 15 teams of 5 men each raced the 5-stage, 71.4 km race in Akita on Aug. 7. Daichi Kimoto got the Hokuriku Corporate Select Team off to a good start with a 36-second lead on the 13.0 km First Stage, but the Komori Corporation B team's Benard Langat cut that down easily with a 36:33 CR for the the 13.0 km Second Stage, putting KCB 2:07 ahead. That didn't last, though, as the Komori Corporation A team's Antipas Kibet dropped a 46:20 CR for the 15.7 km Third Stage to put his team into the lead by 2:03. KCA's fourth runner Takuma Shibata turned that into an unbreakable 3:37 lead with a stage win, leaving anchor Yusuke Baba to bring them home for the win in 3:51:14. The winner on the uphill Fifth Stage last year, Comodi Iida 's Akihiro Kaneko did it ag...

Running through driving cold rain, the pride of Okinawan long distance, Tatsunori Hamasaki , pushed on. The race was the Tokyo Marathon. The date, Mar. 3, 2019, was the culmination of 18 years of competitive life. At 5˚C he was chilled to the core and his eyes blurred. Runners ahead of him dropped out, the second-worst finisher rate in Tokyo history. Hamasaki's legs stiffened and he had trouble moving. "I knew my time would be laughable, but I kept going," he said. "I didn't want it to end in a DNF." That time was far from what he'd hoped, but still he made it to the finish line. The Tokyo Marathon was his chance to qualify for the Marathon Grand Championship Tokyo Olympic Games marathon trials. He finished 81st in 2:23:57. Telling himself, "I'm not going to give up until it's over," Hamasaki doubled back and ran the Apr. 21 Nagano Marathon, his absolute chance. He finished 9:22 off the time he needed to qualify. With no more chance...

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 Ekiden Akita, 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 ...

The 71st Towada Hachimantai Ekiden took place August 7 in Kazuno, Akita on a course from Lake Towada to Hachimantai. For the first time the Towada Hachimantai Ekiden featured a women's race. Four teams competed over the five stage, 28.1 km course, with the  Shiseido  team taking 1st in 1:36:02. 21 teams raced the five stage, 71.6 km men's race, where Komori Corporation ran 3:45:16 to score its first win in 9 years and fifth title in event history. The top placing team from Akita was the Akita T&F Association at 11th. 71st Towada Hachimantai Ekiden Kazuno, Akita, 8/7/18 complete women's results complete men's results Women - 4 teams, 5 stages, 28.1 km Top Team Results 1. Shiseido - 1:36:02 2. Tohoku Fukushi Univ. - 1:36:13 3. Team Tohoku Fukushi - 1:39:49 Stage Best Performances First Stage (5.5 km) - Aoi Makara (Shiseido) - 17:44 Second Stage (7.4 km) - Yumi Yoshikawa (Shiseido) - 23:50 Third Stage (3.1 km) - Kana Miura (Tohoku Fukushi Un...