japan running news

In a 100 km race that came down to a sprint finish over the last 100 m the ascendant Mitsubishi Hitachi Power Systems team came up just short of stopping old-school powerhouse Asahi Kasei from scoring a third-straight New Year Ekiden corporate men's national title. Unremarkable over the first two stages, it took a Third Stage win by Tetsuya Yoroizaka with pressure from the superb 32-year-old  Ryosuke Maki (Subaru) to put Asahi Kasei in range of the front. But on the day's longest stage, the 22.4 km Fourth Stage, MHPS' Jakarta Asian Games marathon gold medalist  Hiroto Inoue had other ideas. Running with incredible smoothness and poise Inoue ran down some of 2018's best Japanese marathoners including Berlin 4th-placer Shogo Nakamura (Fujitsu) and Chicago 2:07:57 man Taku Fujimoto (Toyota) to go 35 seconds out front, 16 seconds faster than he ran last year before his 2:06:54 in Tokyo but still 18 seconds off Yuta Shitara 's course record. With Fukuoka wi...

Fujitsu and Asahi Kasei led the first round of qualifiers for the New Year Ekiden corporate men's national championships, winning Saturday's East Japan and Kyushu regional corporate ekidens. Starting in 7th, Fujitsu took the lead in the East Japan race thanks to a stage-winning run from second man Hiroki Matsueda and never looked back, its final margin of victory over the 7-stage, 76.9 km course standing at 46 seconds over runner-up Kanebo . Racing for the first time since his 4th-place 2:08:16 finish at September's Berlin Marathon, Fujitsu's Shogo Nakamura had a strong run on the 9.5 km Fourth Stage, finishing 2nd on time in 27:59 behind fellow Komazawa Unviersity graduate Tsuyoshi Ugachi (Konica Minolta). 6th at the final exchange, last year's East Japan winner Honda moved up to 4th thanks to a stage-winning run from anchor and half marathon national record holder Yuta Shitara . Shitara was the only runner to break 38 minutes for the 12.9 km Seventh...

by Brett Larner video by Ekiden News The record-setting 2014 National University Half Marathon finish. Thanks to an average stage length of 21.7 km at the ten-stage Hakone Ekiden every Jan. 2-3 the half marathon is the distance Japan's collegiate men focus on and the one at which they excel more than any other.  Sub-63 half marathon bests have become commonplace on the Kanto university circuit and sub-62, even sub-61, the new standard for the top Hakone stars.  This Sunday's National University Half Marathon is no exception, with at least 25 men on the entry list having sub-63 PBs led by Hakone Ekiden Fifth Stage course record setter Daichi Kamino (3rd yr., Aoyama Gakuin University) in 1:01:21 and National University Men's Ekiden Fifth Stage course record setter Ken Yokote (3rd yr., Meiji Univ.) in 1:01:37. Last year's National University Half, held as always in conjunction with Tokyo's Tachikawa City Half Marathon , saw both a new course record of 1:02:0...

http://www.ohme-marathon.jp/news/2015/01/27/3284 translated by Brett Larner We are pleased to announce the elite athletes for the 49th running of the Ome 30 km Road Race on Feb. 15. 30 km Division - Men Nicholas Arciniaga (U.S.A.) D.O.B.: June 30, 1983 (31 yrs old) height/weight: 177 cm / 63 kg bib number: 1 PBs marathon: 2:11:30 half-marathon: 1:03:22 10000 m: 28:29.71 5000 m: 14:13.14 Major Accomplishments 2014 NYC Marathon: 10th 2014 Boston Marathon: 7th 2009 Ome 30 km: 5th 2008 Boston Marathon: 10th Kiyokatsu Hasegawa (JR Higashi Nihon) D.O.B.: Apr. 2, 1983 (31 yrs old) height/weight: 174 cm / 57 kg bib number: 2 PBs marathon: 2:15:15 half-marathon: 1:02:26 10000 m: 28:45:23 5000 m: 14:05.93 Major Accomplishments 2012 Nagano Marathon: 5th 2011 Lake Saroma 100 km: 1st 2010 Tokyo Marathon: 10th 2009 Ome 30 km Road Race: 6th Kohei Ogino (Fujitsu) D.O.B.: Dec. 8, 1989 (25 yrs old) height/weight: 174 cm / 58 kg bib number: 3 ...

by Brett Larner videos by Ekiden News The Ageo City Half Marathon , Japan's major fall half marathon and, jointly with March's National University Half Marathon Championships, the deepest race at its distance in the world, delivered again in perfect conditions for its 27th running.  Every year the head coaches of most of the men's university teams bound for Japan's premier sporting event, the Jan. 2-3 Hakone Ekiden, use Ageo to narrow down their rosters to their final Hakone squad, meaning a dedicated and motivated pack of hundreds going for all they're worth and almost unimaginable results.  For the last three years the New York City Half Marathon has invited the top two Japanese collegiates in Ageo to run NYC in a relationship set up by JRN, adding an extra drive to the front end of the race. Last year Takashi Ichida (Daito Bunka Univ.) craftily kicked his way to the win in the last few meters in a PB 1:02:36, the top five all finishing within 2 seconds ...