For most of the race it was right on track for Mungara's target, with Kawauchi and little-known Shoya Osaki (Team Chudenko) doing most of the frontrunning behind a trio of pacers as Mungara and Noguchi sat back. Past 30 km it was down to eight, with Mungara, 2017 Barcelona Marathon winner and Paralympian Jonah Chesum (Kenya), Kawauchi, Noguchi, Osaki and others still together. Over the next 6 km heading to the final turnaround near 37 km that shook down to just the two Kenyans, Noguchi, Kawauchi and 2016 Hofu Yomiuri Marathon winner Ryo Hashimoto (Team GMO Athletes) as the real contenders threw in a series of surges.
Round the turnaround Mungara showed his knowledge of the course with a familiar from his past wins with a surge, but surprisingly it was Noguchi who parried, attacking with a move that got rid of Chesum and Hashimoto and put Kawauchi on the ropes. From there to the final turn into the finish area it was a replay of last year's classic, Mungara and Noguchi attacking again and again and Kawauchi unable to get back on it. Just like last year Mungara pushed the lefthand corner to the finish area with 300 m to go and opened a small lead. But where Kawauchi had been unable to make it up in the home straight last year, this time Noguchi had the answer, coming back on the final turn and opening 5 seconds on Mungara in the final straight.
With a PB of over two minutes Noguchi took the win in 2:08:59, joining greats Taisuke Kodama, Takeyuki Nakayama, Toshihiko Seko, Hiromi Taniguchi and Arata Fujiwara as the sixth Japanese man in history to win a marathon under 2:10 on foreign soil. Mungara's 2:09:04 for 2nd took more than 30 seconds off his age 43 world record, with Kawauchi setting a world record of his own. More than meeting his pre-race goal as he took 3rd in 2:09:18, Kawauchi's performance was his 23rd career sub-2:12 marathon, removing Ethiopian great Abebe Mekonnen's world record of 22 from the books. Together he and Noguchi also scored Japan's 24th and 25th sub-2:10 marathon times outside Japan to add another small piece of history to the day.
Former marathon world record holder and World Championships gold medalist Rob De Castella shares the moment with Kawauchi at the finish.
Post-race Noguchi told JRN, "The last 5 km were hard and Mungara's surges were pretty scary, but I believed in myself and told myself that if I'd come this far I had to go all the way." "He was very strong," said Mungara. Kawauchi agreed, telling JRN, "I'm surprised how tough Noguchi was. He was fantastic." At the award ceremony Kawauchi pulled out a Japanese flag and handed it to Noguchi. "I brought this," he said. "I was planning on using it myself. It's yours." Just over 6 hours later Kawauchi was on a plane home to Japan, due back at work the next day.
Bekele took the women's race in hand from the start, leading a pack of five including compatriots Letebrhan Gebreslasea and Meseret Tolwak and Kenyans Mercy Kibarus and Leah Kiprono out on 2:24 pace, well under the 2:26:40 course record set last year by Japan's Misato Horie (Team Noritz). Japanese women have long owned the Gold Coast, with seven wins in the last ten years including the last five straight. The last non-Japanese winner was another Ethiopian, Goitetom Haftu, back in 2011, while no Kenyan woman had ever won. Sticking true to her plan of only targeting her 2:28:09 best, Takenaka made no effort to go with the pack, running right on target pace at 3:30-3:31/km.