japan running news

an Abbott World Marathon Majors press release

The Abbott World Marathon Majors Series XI Champions were officially crowned in London following the conclusion of the 2018 Virgin Money London Marathon. Tim Hadzima, General Manager of the Abbott World Marathon Majors said: “It has been another sensational series for Abbott World Marathon Majors. We started in London with a women’s world record from Mary Keitany in 2017 and continued with some astonishing races in each of our six cities.”

Eliud Kipchoge won his third consecutive AbbottWMM title after winning the 2017 BMW Berlin Marathon and the 2018 Virgin Money London Marathon to give him 50 points. Second behind Kipchoge was his fellow Kenyan Geoffrey Kirui with 41 points. Kirui won 25 points with victory at the 2017 IAAF World Championships Marathon and added 16 more with second in the 2018 Boston Marathon.

In third was Japan’s Yuki Kawauchi with 25 points after his victory in the 2018 Boston Marathon. Kawauchi was tied in joint third …

http://www.nyrr.org/media-center/2017/2017-nyrr-new-york-mini-10k/press-releases/recap-kenyas-mary-keitany-wins-her-second-nyrr-new-york-mini-10k-and-fifth-consecutive-nyrr-race

Kayoko Fukushi finally got to do her first-ever race in NYC... enjoying the #Mini10k and #nyrr hospitality. pic.twitter.com/FzRERhvbP6 — Boulder Wave (@BoulderWave) June 10, 2017

NYRR New York Mini 10K
New York, U.S.A., 6/10/17
click here for complete results

1. Mary Keitany (Kenya) - 31:20
2. Mamitu Daska (Ethiopia) - 32:09
3. Aliphine Tuliamuk (U.S.A.) - 32:14
4. Edna Kiplagat (Kenya) - 32:23
5. Diane Nukuri (Burundi) - 32:25
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12. Kayoko Fukushi (Japan/Wacoal) - 33:48

Last weekend's Ottawa Marathon was the final IAAF gold label marathon of the spring season, marking a lull until July's Gold Coast Airport Marathon and August's London World Championships. Gold label events are required to recruit elite athletes of a variety of nationalities under specific time standards, currently 2:10:00 for men and 2:28:00 for women in the marathon, in order to earn that label. Nike's Breaking2 experiment aside, the Tokyo Marathon men's race was the best of the season, led by Wilson Kipsang's year-leading 2:03:58 Japanese all-comers record. Mary Keitany's 2:17:01 women-only world record likewise marked the London Marathon as the top women's race so far this year.

But looking beyond just the fastest winning time, what were the best marathons in the first five months of 2017 by depth of quality? The races with the most gold label performances, the standard that the IAAF has decreed as the top level of the sport? Below are the top ten m…

by Brett Larner


Running just his second career marathon, Toyo University graduate Hiroyuki Yamamoto followed up on his 2:11:48 debut at Beppu-Oita last year with a 2:11:49 for 4th at the New York City Marathon.  Always in the lead pack until he wasn't, always looking smooth, confident and relaxed, Yamamoto's placing was the best-ever by a Japanese man in New York, his time also up near the top of the Japanese lists in New York.

2015 World Champion Ghirmay Ghebreslassie (Eritrea) smoked a 2:07:51 for the win, the third-fastsest winning time in NYC history, while this year's Lake Biwa Mainichi Marathon winner Lucas Rotich (Kenya) was 2nd.  The perpetual Abdi Abdirahman (U.S.A.) held Yamamoto off for 3rd in 2:11:23.  In an admittedly weaker than usual field, Yamamoto's best-ever Japanese placing was also arguably the best performance by a Japanese man in any of the World Marathon Majors events since Kurao Umeki's 3rd-place finish at the 2006 Berlin Marathon.  In the …

by Brett Larner
Incognito at the expo.
After two failed attempts and a year mostly lost to self-inflicted injury following a moderate ankle sprain late last December, Yuki Kawauchi (Saitama Pref. Gov't) turned in his best race of the year and one of the best of his career at the TCS New York City Marathon, negative splitting 2:13:29 for 6th place overall as the top non-African finisher.

Kawauchi and winner Stanley Biwott (Kenya) pre-race.

Running NYC for the third time with support from JRN, Kawauchi looked strong and comfortable through the relatively slow 1:06:50 first half, rolling with the ebbs and flows of New York's unpaced, hilly race.  Coming off the Queensboro Bridge after 25 km in the lead pack for the first time in his three NYCM attempts, he stayed in contention as part of a group of eight leaders as the pace went as fast as 2:55/km heading up to the Bronx, focused and mostly free of his characteristic pained grimace.

Finally losing touch when Kenyan winner Stanley…