japan running news

by Brett Larner Having left Japan's corporate team system, 2012 Lake Biwa Mainichi Marathon winner Samuel Ndungu (Kenya) was back to take the top spot again in Biwako's cold and rainy 70th edition.  With a target pace of 3:00/km for the front group including last year's winner Bazu Worku (Ethiopia), 2014 European champion Daniele Meucci (Italy), Mongolian national record holder Ser-Od Bat-Ochir (Team NTN) and Japanese World Championships hopefuls Kazuhiro Maeda (Team Kyudenko), Satoru Sasaki (Team Asahi Kasei) and Tsuyoshi Ugachi (Team Konica Minolta), Kenyan pacers Kimutai Kiplimo and Silas Kimutai were not even close, going through 2 km in 6:19 and hitting 5 km in 15:30, well over 2:10 marathon pace. Collegiate runner Atsuya Hiraiwa (Meijo Univ.) pulled in front of the pacers to try to get the race moving, but although the next 10 km were decent, by 20 km they were back to another 15:30 split.  Halfway came in 1:04:39 with a pack of 40 still together, but a...

by Brett Larner It's a great luxury to get to watch a live marathon broadcast with no commercials, but that's just what you get with the 70th edition of the Lake Biwa Mainichi Marathon this Sunday.  Japan's first IAAF gold label race, Biwako as it is called here features a live ad-free nationwide broadcast on NHK starting at 12:15 p.m. Japan time with the race kicking off at 12:30.  Overseas viewers can follow @JRNLive for live coverage throughout the race if NHK is not available in your area. And what does the race hold?  It's the last of the selection races for the Japanese team for the Beijing World Championships.  At Tokyo last week the Federation seemed to have backed off its sub-2:06:30 requirement for auto team selection, with more talk about the top Japanese position in the selection races and deserving praise for the 2:07:39 scored in Tokyo by Masato Imai (Team Toyota Kyushu).  Imai is a clear favorite to make the team, with Fukuoka's top Japane...

by Brett Larner The Lake Biwa Mainichi Marathon , universally called Biwako for short in Japan, celebrates its 70th running this year, with a place at the Beijing World Championships up for any Japanese man who decides to run sub-2:06:30.  For its anniversary year race Biwako brings back defending champion Bazu Worku (Ethiopia) and 2012 winner Samuel Ndungu (Kenya) to face the likes of 2:06 man Eric Ndiema (Kenya), Mongolian national record holder Ser-Od Bat-Ochir (Team NTN), 2:08:55 runner Jose Antonio Uribe (Mexico), 2014 European champion Daniele Meucci (Italy) and many more from around the world in one of the most international fields in Biwako history. On the domestic front, with a 2:08:00 best Kazuhiro Maeda (Team Kyudenko), a rare Japanese athlete to have been at the top of the Japanese scene all the way from high school through a solid marathon career, goes in ranked #1 despite a weak 2014, twins Takayuki Matsumiya (Team Konica Minolta) and Yuko Matsumiya (Team...

JRN's most-read articles of 2012 by month: January Toyo University takes eight minutes off Hakone Ekiden course record in historic win. -  Jan. 3 Russian Tatyana Aryasova stripped of 2011 Tokyo Marathon title after testing positive for masking agent. - Jan. 24 February Kisorio wins deepest-ever Marugame International Half-Marathon. - Feb. 5 2012 Tokyo Marathon preview.   - Feb. 23 Kipyego, Habtumu win Tokyo Marathon, Fujiwara back with 2:07:48. - Feb. 26 Kawauchi, 14th in 2:12:52: "I do not think I will be picked" for Olympics; shaves head. - Feb. 27 Gebrselassie gives words of support to Kawauchi. - Feb. 28 Fujiwara's high school coach, hometown supporters delighted with Tokyo performance. - Feb. 28 March Lake Biwa Mainichi Marathon preview. - Mar. 2 Takehiro Deki ahead of Lake Biwa Mainichi Marathon debut: "That's where my talent is." - Mar. 2 Ndungu wins debut at Lake Biwa, Szost 2:07:39 sets Polish NR, Yamamoto takes probabl...

by Brett Larner photo by Dr. Helmut Winter In a superb race led by Fukuoka Marathon course record-holder Tsegaye Kebede 's world record-pace second half 2:04:38 course record win, relatively unknown 23-year-old Koji Kobayashi (Team Subaru) was the top Japanese man, 14th in a PB of 2:10:40 in his second marathon. While national record-holder Toshinari Takaoka -coached 2:12 runner Hiroki Kadota (Team Kanebo) started the race off in the first pack and 2:11 man Yuki Moriwaki (Team JFE Steel) struggled from the start, Kobayashi, 2:10 runner Takeshi Kumamoto (Team Toyota) and 2:09:16 veteran Takashi Horiguchi (Team Honda) stuck with top American hopeful Dathan Ritzenhein on low-2:07 pace. Kadota soon dropped back to join the pack, but when Ritzenhein accelerated into high-2:06 territory near halfway the pack splintered. Kobayashi, coached by 2:08 man Wataru Okutani at Subaru, was the last to hang on, losing touch just before 30 km but holding on to 2:08 pace through 40 km....

by Brett Larner Takashi Horiguchi in last year's Chicago Marathon. Follow Horiguchi on Twitter. Photo (c) 2011 Dr. Helmut Winter Long one of the races of choice for Japanese athletes looking to run a fast time overseas and the home of Toshinari Takaoka 's 2:06:16 Japanese national record, for the second year in a row the Chicago Marathon is playing host to a group of developmental-level Japanese men.  This year's group is a step above last year's, including one 2:09 man, one 2:10, one 2:11 and two 2:12 runners. The Japanese federation has said that a sub-2:08 in any of the Majors will put the runner into the stable for next year's Moscow World Championships marathon squad, but of the men in Chicago only veteran  Takashi Horiguchi  (Team Honda) looks to be in contention.  After taking eight years to break his 2:12:06 debut time Horiguchi has been on a roll for the last year and a half, PBing twice and becoming one of eight Japanese men so far this year to ha...

http://www.chicagomarathon.com/CMS400Min/uploadedFiles/Chicago_Marathon/Press_Center/Press%20Release%2009-12-12.pdf Along with the six Japanese men in the Chicago Marathon field, 2011 Fukuoka Marathon winner Samuel Ndungu  is a longtime Japanese-based runner, Thomas Frazer  was a member of the Shibuya Ekiden course record-setting team, and Lucy Kabuu  is a graduate of Aomori Yamada H.S. and a former runner for Suzuki Hamamatsu.

by Brett Larner In addition to the big Golden Games in Nobeoka and the Kanto and Kansai Regional University Track & Field Championships, several regional corporate championship meets also saw noteworthy results over the weekend. At the Chugoku Jitsugyodan Championships in Hiroshima, former Sera H.S. ace Charles Ndirangu  (Team JFE Steel) continued his unbeaten streak in his second pro race, scoring his tenth-straight win by winning the 5000 m in 13:42.00 by a margin of over 18 seconds.  Team Tenmaya runners made up the majority of the field in the women's 5000 m, with young Akari Ota  winning in 16:05.99.  Tenmaya's former great Yurika Nakamura continued her apparent downward spiral, 15th in 17:47.93. Almost on a par with Ndirangu's performance was that of year-leading half-marathoner Chihiro Miyawaki  (Team Toyota), who beat a pack of Kenyans including 2011 Fukuoka International Marathon winner Samuel Ndungu  (Team Aichi Seiko) to set a meet rec...

by Brett Larner photos by Dr. Helmut Winter Hot on the heels of a record-setting morning of half-marathon action across the country, the 67th Lake Biwa Mainichi Marathon , Japan's final domestic selection race for its London Olympics men's marathon team, was tense and exciting, with a string of strong debuts, a national record, and an unexpected last-minute Olympic berth upset making up most of the major results in the top ten. In cold, rainy conditions Japan-based Kenyan Samuel Ndungu  (Team Aichi Seiko) was the surprise winner, marking a steady 2:07:04 debut time for the win.  Ndungu sat tight in the lead pack, which stayed on low-2:07 pace throughout the race, through km in 30:12, 20 km in 1:00:22 and halfway in 1:03:38.  Virtually the entire elite field and the upper echelons of the general division went with him, more than forty men still in contention at halfway.  Some of the few early casualties included Australia's Lee Troop , Canadian Dylan Wykes , a...

by Brett Larner Right on schedule the organizers of the Lake Biwa Mainichi Marathon , the last chance for Japanese men to make the London Olympics marathon team, have announced the complete field for this year's race.  Coming on Mar. 4 just a week after the Tokyo Marathon, Biwako, as the race is known in Japan, has managed to put together a strong international field, both at the front end and further back at the level where people will be trying to meet their countries' Olympic qualification times.  The clear favorites in the first category are 2:06 Kenyan Nicholas Manza  and 2:07 Ethiopian Bekana Daba , but with Japan based Kenyans Gideon Ngatuny  (Team Nissin Shokuhin) and Samuel Ndungu  (Team Aichi Seiko) on the list to make their debuts the lead pack could be deeper than usual.  Biwako has always been good to Spanish marathoners, and with sub-28 runner Ayad Lamdassem entered for an apparent debut it is possible that this year could see another one f...

by Brett Larner The Japanese track season continued the May 7-8 weekend with the first of three straight weekends of regional corporate championships. The Chugoku Regional Championships held its 5000 m the night of May 7, with Yuko Watanabe (Team Endion) and Hironori Arai (Team Chugoku Denryoku) having surprise wins in 16:08.48 and 13:58.65 over top-ranked woman Rei Ohara (Team Tenmaya) and Kenyan Joseph Gitau (Team JFE Steel). The rest of the meet including the 10000 m will be held this coming weekend of the 14th-15th. The Chubu region held its entire championships on the 7th and 8th, meaning many runners doubled at 5000 m and 10000 m in less than 24 hours. Kenyan John Thuo (Team Toyota), who ran a then-world-leading 10000 m last month at the Hyogo Relay Carnival meet, had the best run of the weekend, taking the men's 10000 m in 27:52.86. His teammate Chihiro Miyawaki (Team Toyota) was the top Japanese finisher, 5th in 29:10.06 with a 57-second last lap. Kenyan Samuel...

http://mainichi.jp/enta/sports/general/news/20110206k0000e050020000c.html http://sankei.jp.msn.com/sports/news/110206/oth11020617280011-n1.htm http://www.47news.jp/CN/201102/CN2011020601000204.html http://sankei.jp.msn.com/sports/news/110206/oth11020617300012-n1.htm http://www.shikoku-np.co.jp/sports/local/article.aspx?id=20110206000201 translated and edited by Brett Larner Last year's National Corporate Half Marathon Championships winner Samuel Ndungu (Kenya/Team Aichi Seiko) won the 2011 Kagawa Marugame International Half Marathon on Feb. 6, clocking a PB of 1:00:55. Tsuyoshi Ugachi (Team Konica Minolta), the 12th-placer at last year's World Half Marathon Championships, was 2nd in a PB of 1:00:58, the all-time 3rd-fastest Japanese mark. Course record holder Mekubo Mogusu (Kenya/Team Aidem) was 3rd after slowing dramatically in the final kilometer of the race. Times were fast overall as eight of the top ten recorded new PBs. Beijing Olympics marathoner Tsuyoshi Ogata (Tea...

by Brett Larner Sunday's Kagawa Marugame International Half Marathon is always one of the biggest and fastest Japanese half marathons of the year, the site of the women's national record and a sub-60 men's course record. Last year's race saw a quick 1:08:37 from unexpected women's winner Nikki Chapple (Australia) and the only sub-70 half of the year by a Japanese woman along with two university men breaking 62 minutes. Start lists have not yet been published but Chapple is scheduled to defend her win again this year. It won't be easy, as the top woman of 2010, Elvan Abeleygesse (Turkey), and national record holder Kayoko Fukushi (Team Wacoal) are also on the entry list. Should all three start it would be very surprising if someone else factored into the win. Likely contenders for the second pack include Silviia Skvortsova (Russia), Yoshiko Fujinaga (Team Shiseido) and Megumi Seike (Team Sysmex). In the men's race, the withdrawal of 27:38 10000 m runne...

by Brett Larner Today the 2011 Kagawa Marugame International Half Marathon announced the elite field for this year's 65th running on Feb. 6. Organizers have set up an excellent women's race, with defending champion Nikki Chapple (Australia) facing the top half marathoner of 2010, Olympic track medalist Elvan Abeylegesse (Turkey) and national half marathon record holder Kayoko Fukushi (Team Wacoal). Abeylegesse is the obvious favorite, but it will be very interesting to see what Fukushi, who set the national record of 1:07:26 in her half marathon debut at Marugame in 2005 and made a quiet return to the distance after over three years with a win at July's Shibetsu Half Marathon, has planned. Chapple's winning time of 1:08:37 from last year puts her in reach of either woman. The men's race is headed by course record holder Mekubo Mogusu (Kenya/Team Aidem) and features the likes of 2:06 marathoner Rachid Kisri (Morocco) and 2010 Asian Games marathon gold medalist ...

by Brett Larner photos by Daniel Seite #30 Kenta Murayama (Meisei H.S.) on the shoulder of 2010 Tokyo Marathon winner #16 Masakazu Fujiwara (Team Honda). Hot from a 13:49.45 PB two weeks ago, Meisei High School's Kenta Murayama ran the fastest 10000 m time of the year by a Japanese high schooler, 28:23.18, to finish 3rd in the A-heat at the 213th Nittai University Time Trials meet Dec. 4 in Yokohama. Ahead of Murayama were only Kenyans Jacob Wanjuki and Samuel Ndungu of Team Aichi Seiko, Wanjuki winning in a strong PB of 27:49.44. Among the Japanese competition to finish behind Murayama were 2010 Tokyo Marathon winner Masakazu Fujiwara (Team Honda) and 2010 Kanto Regional University 5000 m champion Taku Fujimoto (Kokushikan Univ.), who battled head to head to finish 5th and 6th in 28:27.52 and 28:27.66. 10000 m A-Heat winner Jacob Wanjuki (Kenya/Team Aichi Seiko). Murayama's time improved the high school year best time by 30 seconds over the sub-29 time set two weeks ago b...

by Brett Larner With a new 1:30 p.m. start time due no doubt to the exigencies of live television broadcast, sunny, humid and windy conditions with temperatures of 29 degrees greeted runners at the start of the 53rd Sapporo International Half Marathon on July 4. 2006 men's champion Cyrus Njui (Kenya/Team Hitachi Cable) and 2008 women's winner Yuri Kano (Second Wind AC) came out on top again, winning over the likes of 2009 World Championships marathon gold medalist Abel Kirui (Kenya), 2:05 marathoner Vincent Kipruto (Kenya) and course record holder Mekubo Mogusu (Kenya/Team Aidem) in Njui's case and defending champion Yurika Nakamura (Team Tenmaya) in Kano's. Njui ran a race both controlled and aggressive, at the head of the pack from start to finish but gradually building his win. A conservative 14:28 split over the downhill first 5 km gave way to a 14:22 on the flat from 5 to 10 km. Njui remained at the head of the pack as the group whittled down to four Kenyans...

http://www.chugoku-np.co.jp/sports/Sp201003220091.html translated and edited by Brett Larner On a windy day with strong headwinds in the second half of the race, Samuel Ndungu (Team Aichi Seiko) ran 1:01:19 to take the National Corporate Half Marathon Championships men's race on Mar. 21, with defending champion Joseph Gitau (Team JFE Steel) 2nd. Akihiko Tsumurai (Team Mazda) was the top Japanese finisher, 5th overall in a PB of 1:01:58 despite his left shoe coming undone partway through the race. "It didn't bother me at all," he said afterwards. With the strong time and placing Tsumurai secured a spot on the Japanese national team for October's World Half Marathon Championships in China. Altogether 105 men in the field broke 66 minutes. Defending women's champion Danielle Filomena Cheyech (Team Uniqlo) took a second win with a 1:09:01 run. Berlin World Championships women's marathon silver medalist Yoshimi Ozaki (Team Daiichi Seimei) was 2nd in 1:10:06, li...

by Brett Larner Two weeks after running a course record 1:00:11 to win the Nagoya Half Marathon in his debut at the distance, Team Nissin Shokuhin's Masai Kenyan ringer Gideon Ngatuny won Kyushu's elite Kumamoto Kosa 10 Mile Road Race, clocking 45:15 and beating runner-up Hailu Mekonnen of Team Honda by 44 seconds. Teammates Samuel Ndungu and Jacob Wajuki of Team Aichi Steel came in together in 46:32 to round out the top positions. Curiously, Kumamoto Kosa organizers scored the four African runners, all of whom are based in Japan and run professionally for Japanese teams, in a separate 'International Division' with a one-minute head start over the 'General Division,' which was made up exclusively of professional Japanese runners including many of the African runners' nominal teammates. Although the International Division ran first and the 'winner' of the General Division, Ngatuny's fellow Nissin runner Kosaku Hoshina, clocked only 46:40, slower t...