japan running news

by Brett Larner As the Japanese academic year comes to a close this month, many of this year's talented group of graduating university seniors prepare to enter the corporate team world of jitsugyodan running while others bid goodbye to their days of serious running. Below is a listing of some of the best runners in this year's graduating class and their destinations next month. Tsuguya Asahi (Waseda Univ.) - Team Kyudenko Soji Ikeda (Komazawa Univ.) - Team Yakult Kenta Kawasaki (Kokushikan Univ.) - Team Suzuki Yuki Kawauchi (Gakushuin Univ.) - Saitama Prefectural Government Masato Kihara (Chuo Gakuin Univ.) - Team Kanebo Mekubo Mogusu (Yamanashi Gakuin Univ.) - Team Aidem Kazuki Onishi (Toyo Univ.) - Team Kanebo Tomoya Onishi (Toyo Univ.) - Team Asahi Kasei Hiroyuki Ono (Juntendo Univ.) - Team Nissin Shokuhin Yukinori Ota (Komazawa Univ.) - Team Mazda Takuma Sasaya (Nihon Univ.) - Team JR Higashi Nihon Yuki Sato (Tokai Univ.) - Team Nissin Shokuhin / Tokai Graduate School Tsuyo...

by Brett Larner Click here for a video digest of Day Two and individual stage highlights. Toyo University celebrates its first-ever Hakone Ekiden win. Click photo for additional pictures courtesy of Sanspo.com. On Day Two of the 2009 Hakone Ekiden Toyo University defied the odds, hanging on to its slim lead over pre-race favorite Waseda University to come up victorious for the first time in the school’s 67 Hakone appearances. Riding on the momentum of Toyo’s first day victory, the team’s 6th, 7th and 8th stage runners ran impeccably, dueling with Day One runner-up Waseda at every turn before 9th leg runner Shogo Otsu dealt Waseda’s hopes of its first win in sixteen years a death blow with a tactical masterstroke. Waseda anchor Itaru Sando tried his best to close the gap Otsu opened but could get no closer than 41 seconds, leaving Waseda in 2nd place once again. Toyo’s time of 5:35:50 for the 109.9 km Day Two course was also the fastest in the field, giving it a rare triple crown with...