Skip to main content

Ryoko Kizaki 31:38 to Win Abashiri 10000 m; Baek Sets Apparent Korean National Record (updated)

by Brett Larner

After being named to this year's World Half Marathon team on the strength of her runner-up finish at last month's National Track and Field Championships, Ryoko Kizaki (Team Daihatsu) closed off this year's Hokuren Distance Challenge with a bang. Kizaki won the HDC's Abashiri meet 10000 m in 31:38.71, a PB by over 45 seconds and a time which missed putting her in the top 10 worldwide so far this year by only 1 second. Second place finisher Kayo Sugihara (Team Denso) was nearly a minute behind in 32:33.37. Sugihara was the only runner in the top 5 not to run a PB.

Kizaki is now ranked 3rd among Japanese women for 10000 m in 2010. Combined with her rankings of 6th for 5000 m, 7th for half marathon and 5th for marathon she is the frontrunner to be named Japanese women's distance runner of the year.

Kenyan ace Edward Waweru (Team NTN) took the men's 5000 m in a quick 13:18.54, while 5th-placer Seung-Ho Baek (S. Korea), a university student and this year's Korean 5000 m national champion, ran what is apparently a South Korean national record of 13:42.98. Masato Kihara (Team Kanebo) was the top Japanese finisher, 4th in 13:40.14.

In other events, first-year corporate runners Kazue Kojima (Team Toyota Jidoshoki) and Yuta Takahashi (Team S&B) won the women's and men's 3000 m. Other distances in the meet included 800 m, 1500 m and 10000 m race walk.

2010 Hokuren Distance Challenge Abashiri Meet - Top Finishers
click here for complete results
Women's 10000 m A-heat
1. Ryoko Kizaki (Team Daihatsu) - 31:38.71 - PB
2. Kayo Sugihara (Team Denso) - 32:33.37
3. Hiroko Shoi (Team Nihon ChemiCon) - 32:36.36 - PB
4. Yuko Machida (Team Nihon ChemiCon) - 32:43.04 - PB
5. Saori Nejo (Team Hokuren) - 32:45.54 - PB
6. Yoko Miyauchi (Team Wacoal) - 32:53.78
7. Shino Saito (Team Shimamura) - 33:04.33
8. Eri Sato (Team Mitsui Sumitomo Kaijo) - 33:07.97
9. Noriko Higuchi (Team Wacoal) - 33:11.42
10. Yuka Takashima (Team Denso) - 33:12.28

Men's 5000 m A-heat
1. Edward Waweru (Kenya/Team NTN) - 13:18.54
2. Muwaka Muendo (Kenya/Team Aisan Kogyo) - 13:21.45
3. Titus Waroru (Kenya/Chinzai H.S.) - 13:39.45
4. Masato Kihara (Team Kanebo) - 13:40.14
5. Seung-Ho Baek (S. Korea) - 13:42.98 - NR
6. Shota Yamaguchi (Team Fujitsu) - 13:44.21
7. Shota Hiraga (Waseda Univ.) - 13:45.83
8. Daisuke Shimizu (Team Kanebo) - 13:46.87
9. Wataru Ueno (Komazawa Univ.) - 13:47.10
10. Kenta Sato (Team Tokyo Denryoku) - 13:47.23

Women's 3000 m A-heat
1. Kazue Kojima (Team Toyota Jidoshoki) - 9:08.85
2. Ayaka Mori (Team Toyota Jidoshoki) - 9:12.51
3. Saori Yamashita (Team Hokuren) - 9:13.10

Men's 3000 m
1. Yuta Takahashi (Team S&B) - 8:10.45
2. Noriaki Takahashi (Team S&B) - 8:11.76
3. Akira Kiniwa (Team S&B) - 8:43.97

(c) 2010 Brett Larner
all rights reserved

Comments

Brett Larner said…
When I put up the quick report on Kizaki earlier today there were no men listed among the finishers, but now that I have had time to go through the results in more detail I see that Daihatsu, Wacoal, Hokuren and Panasonic each had a male assistant coach who ran part of the race but did not finish. I assume Daihatsu's coach Atsushi Sawayanagi paced Kizaki partway but do not know how far or whether he actually ran with her or another Daihatsu runner, of whichh there were three in the race.

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