japan running news

The Osaka Half Marathon took another big step up the domestic half marathon rankings from a mass-participation race run alongside the Osaka International Women's Marathon to one of the country's top-tier races. In the women's race, the debuting Jecinta Nyokabi (Denso) went out fast, only to be run down by veteran Yumi Yoshikawa (Canon AC) by 10 km. Nyokabi faded to 6th in 1:10:41, but Yoshikawa pushed on to a PB 1:09:14 for the win. Rina Shimizu (Noritz), Yuna Takahashi (Shimamura) and Makoto Tsuchiya (Ritsumeikan Univ.) all broke 70 minutes, Tsuchiya taking the Kansai Region collegiate title in 1:09:32 for 4th overall. Everyone in the top 10 who wasn't debuting ran a PB, a mark of how fast the day was even with cold and windy conditions. The men's race went out on sub-61 pace courtesy of Yudai Shimazu (GMO), then got a big injection of speed when Kyuma Yokota (Toyota Kyushu) took off close to 60-flat pace. Yokota opened a 10-second lead by 15 km, but over ...

Kenyans Elisha Rotich and Jackline Chelal made it a Kenyan double at the Kobe Marathon , Rotich outrunning American Ethan Shuley by 28 seconds for the win in 2:11:02 and Chelal with an almost 2-minute lead in 2:28:25. The men's race started off with a lead group of 11, going through 10 km in 30:10 and halfway in 1:03:38. Wearing a mass-participation bib and starting 6 seconds back from the elites, Shuley, whose previous best was a 2:18:13 in Nagano this past April and who has only 2 other races on his World Athletics profile in the last 10 years, both indoor 3000 m, improbably led through 25 km in 1:15:19, 2:07:07 pace, before losing touch. Ethiopian Abay Alemu surged into the lead, only to get run down by Rotich just after 30 km and ultimately dropping out. Rotich slowed after moving into the top spot but held his margin over Shuley to win 2:11:02 to 2:11:30. Hiromasa Kumahashi (Sanyo Tokushu Seiko) was 3rd in 2:11:45, closing on Shuley fast but running out of ground before ...

After a surprise finish outside the top 10 at this year's Hakone Ekiden, Meiji University  was back to do the expected, winning the Hakone Ekiden Yosenkai half marathon qualifier Saturday in Tachikawa, Tokyo by over 4 minutes. In windy conditions things went out slowly up front, the lead group of 6 Kenyans hitting the first km in only 3:01. Last year's winner Joseph Lemeteki Razini  (Takushoku Univ.) made a push to get things into gear and Vincent Raimoi (Kokushikan Univ.), James Bunuka  (Surugadai Univ.), Charles Kamau Wanjiku  (Musashino Gakuin Univ.) and Paul Onyiego  (Yamanashi Gakuin Univ.) all took turns leading, but it wasn't until 14 km for Wanjiku to make a serous move. Running the rest of the way unchallenged, he took 1st in 1:01:23, more than a minute slower than Razini's winning time last year. The only two people in the front group not to take the lead at some point, Samson Ndirangu (Ryutsu Keizai Univ.) and Noah Kiplimo  (Nihon Yakka Univ....