japan running news

http://kiji.i-bunbun.com/read/read.cgi?1201791600=120182742815502=1 translated by Brett Larner At the 57th Beppu-Oita Mainichi Marathon [Betsudai] on Feb. 3, runners from Oita Prefecture will compete for the Ikenaka Cup, a trophy awarded each year to the top Oita finisher. Among the competitors will be 6 members of Oita-based Toshiba LSI's jitsugyodan team. For these 6 runners it will be their last run as teammates; Toshiba LSI has withdrawn its financial support and the team will be disbanded in March. In this last run, Team Toshiba LSI entrants include Teppei Tsunesada, Kazuhiko Hirata, Keisuke Kihara, Tokio Miyazaki, Takanori Tagami and Masahiro Tsukamoto. "Once the team is disbanded these guys won't be able to keep practicing the way they have been, so in this last full marathon I want one of them to bring home the Ikenaga Cup," said the team's coach Kazuyuki Sato. Tsunesada, Hirata and Miyazaki are in good shape and aiming to break 2:20. "The first 30 km...

by Brett Larner On Jan. 17 the Beppu-Oita Mainichi Marathon announced the domestic and international elite fields for the event's 57th running on Feb. 3. Although Beppu-Oita, or Betsudai as the race is colloquially known, has in the past sometimes served as a selection race for world-level competitions, its absence from the pool of Beijing Olympics selection races means that this year's domestic elite field is comparatively limited. The Japanese elite field includes only four athletes. Team Kanebo's Michitane Noda is the most experienced of the group, holding a PB of 2:09:58 from the 2003 Fukuoka International Marathon. Noriyuki Mizuguchi of Team Otsuka Seiyaku will be trying to improve on his PB of 2:14:26. The remaining two domestic competitors, Team Nissin's Kenta Oshima and Team Fujitsu's Takayuki Ota, are fast half-marathoners who will be debuting at the full marathon distance in Betsudai. The overseas elite field is slightly larger at seven runners. The top e...