japan running news

This weekend was the first in the last month of qualifying for September's MGC Race 2020 Olympic marathon trials. People who haven't made it yet have until Apr. 30 to squeeze in one more race under 2:24:00 or averaging under 2:28:00 with one other race inside the qualification window for women and 2:08:30 or 2:11:00 for men. Natsuki Omori (Daihatsu) and Hanae Tanaka (Shiseido) were at the Rotterdam Marathon to go for the two-race average, Omori needing to run 2:26:45 and Tanaka 2:28:20. Despite on-target first halves both came up short, Omori running 2:29:58 and Tanaka 2:39:55. Omori's time was the fastest so far this year outside Japan by a Japanese woman. At the Vienna City Marathon , Hideyuki Ikegami (Aminosaurus) went through halfway on track for a sub-2:10, but the pace proved too much for him as he dropped over the second half to finish in 2:15:24. © 2019 Brett Larner, all rights reserved

by Brett Larner The biggest domestic road action of the weekend took place in Shizuoka at the Yaizu Minato Half Marathon where Yoshiki Koizumi  of 2013 Hakone Ekiden winner Nittai University  battled last year's winner Tomoyasu Matsui  (Meiji Univ.) from start to finish, both breaking the course record as Koizumi claimed the win in 1:03:26. 2013 National University Men's Ekiden champion Komazawa University  had the next two men across the line, both Kohei Futaoka  and Shoya Kurokawa  timed at 1:03:48.  Komazawa took the win in Yaizu's University Pair Marathon team scoring based on the combined times of its top two finishers, setting a new record of 2:07:36. Nittai was just a second behind, likewise clearing the old record in 2:07:37.  The top non-collegiate runner was Yuki Kawauchi  (Saitama Pref. Gov't), 9th overall in 1:04:19 a week after his latest marathon course record win in Saga.  Almost simultaneously, his youngest brother Ko...

http://www.sanyo.oni.co.jp/feature/sports/other/2012/04/02/20120402195150.html translated by Brett Larner Team Tenmaya announced on Apr. 2 that its runner Tomo Morimoto , 28, the alternate for the 2008 Beijing Olympics women's marathon team, has retired from competition as of the end of March.  A native of Hyogo prefecture, Morimoto joined Tenmaya in 2002 after graduating from Shujitsu H.S.  Her abundance of stamina and mental fortitude giving her a competitive edge, Morimoto won the May, 2006 Vienna Marathon in 2:24:33 in only her second marathon.  She was the alternate for both the Beijing Olympics and Berlin World Championships marathon teams.  Her target for this year was the London Olympics, but a long-term leg problem prevented her from starting in any of the domestic selection races.  Despite an injury to her right ankle she won last August's Hokkaido Marathon, a race which was to be her final marathon.  Following her retirement she will work in...

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