Hokuren Distance Challenge Series Begins June 4

by Brett Larner

The Hokuren Distance Challenge is set to kick off June 4 in Sapporo, sponsored by the Hokkaido-based Hokuren company. The series of six track meets throughout June and July in locations around Japan`s northernmost island of Hokkaido attracts top male and female jitsugyodan and university runners hoping to tune up for the National Championships at the end of June and for the start of the ekiden training season, as well as a number of Korean professional runners. The meets focus on long distance and, to a lesser degree, middle distance events and are scheduled to take place:

June 4: Sapporo
June 8: Shibetsu
June 11: Fukagawa
July 9: Abashira
July 13: Kitami
July 16: Kushiro

Click here for a complete timetable of all six meets. Entry lists are available here.

Today`s Sapporo meet includes men`s and women`s 1500 m, 3000 m, 3000 m SC, 5000 m and 5000 m RW events. A complete start list for all events is available here. The most notable entrant of the day is women`s 1500 m national record holder Yuriko Kobayashi (Team Toyota Jidoshokki). Kobayashi is the only Japanese woman to run the Olympic A-standard in the 5000 m so far this year, but she has yet to run even the Olympic B-standard this year in the 1500 m after setting the national record with a B-standard 4:07.87 as a high school student in 2006. Kobayashi is slated to run the 3000 m in Sapporo.

Results will be posted in English following today`s meet.

(c) 2008 Brett Larner
all rights reserved

Comments

Most-Read This Week

Morii Surprises With Second-Ever Japanese Sub-2:10 at Boston

With three sub-2:09 Japanese men in the race and good weather conditions by Boston standards the chances were decent that somebody was going to follow 1981 winner Toshihiko Seko 's 2:09:26 and score a sub-2:10 at the Boston Marathon . But nobody thought it was going to be by a 2:14 amateur. Paris Olympic team member Suguru Osako had taken 3rd in Boston in 2:10:28 in his debut seven years ago, and both he and 2:08 runners Kento Otsu and Ryoma Takeuchi were aiming for spots in the top 10, Otsu after having run a 1:01:43 half marathon PB in February and Takeuchi of a 2:08:40 marathon PB at Hofu last December. A high-level amateur with a 2:14:15 PB who scored a trip to Boston after winning a local race in Japan, Yuma Morii told JRN minutes before the start of the race, "I'm not thinking about time at all. I'm going to make top 10, whatever time it takes." Running Boston for the first time Morii took off with a 4:32 on the downhill opening mile, but after that Sis

Saturday at Kanaguri and Nittai

Two big meets happened Saturday, one in Kumamoto and the other in Yokohama. At Kumamoto's Kanaguri Memorial Meet , Benard Koech (Kyudenko) turned in the performance of the day with a 13:13.52 meet record to win the men's 5000 m A-heat by just 0.11 seconds over Emmanuel Kipchirchir (SGH). The top four were all under 13:20, with 10000 m national record holder Kazuya Shiojiri (Fujitsu) bouncing back from a DNF at last month's The TEN to take the top Japanese spot at 7th overall in 13:24.57. The B-heat was also decently quick, Shadrack Rono (Subaru) winning in 13:21.55 and Shoya Yonei (JR Higashi Nihon) running a 10-second PB to get under 13:30 for the first time in 13:29.29 for 6th. Paris Olympics marathoner Akira Akasaki (Kyudenko) was 9th in 13:30.62. South Sudan's Abraham Guem (Ami AC) also set a meet record in the men's 1500 m A-heat in 3:38.94. 3000 mSC national record holder Ryuji Miura made his debut with the Subaru corporate team, running 3:39.78 for 2n

Three Japanese Men Running 128th Boston Marathon

Back in Japan's golden years Boston was a big draw for its top talent in the marathon, but for a long time it was off the list of first-choice marathons as the preoccupation shifted to times. That started changing again in 2017 when 5000 m NR holder Suguru Osako made his debut there with a 2:10:28 for 3rd, following in the footsteps of other Waseda University alum who ran well in Boston including two-time winner Toshihiko Seko and the late Tomoyuki Taniguchi . Osako was 3rd at October's Paris Olympic marathon trials, putting him in position to be on the Paris team unless someone runs 2:05:50 or better at February's Osaka Marathon or March's Tokyo Marathon. Having run 2:06:13 in Tokyo last year but beaten by two Japanese men who both went under 2:06, there wasn't really any upside to Osako doing Tokyo this time. Osaka seemed like the logical choice, but like he has for most of his life Osako is following his own motivations and opting to return to the 128th Boston

japan running news

Search This Blog