Tanui Runs World-Leading 27:08.21 in Fukuoka – Regional Corporate Track Championship Highlights – by Brett Larner – Japan Running News

2013 Moscow World Championships men's 10000 m bronze medalist Paul Tanui (Team Kyudenko) capped a weekend of regional corporate track and field championships with a world-leading 27:08.21 meet record at the Kyushu Championships. 

Starting at near world record pace with a 2:38.38 first 1000 m Tanui soon calmed down and ran under control, going through halfway in 13:34.98 and lapping the entire field including sub-62 half marathoner Hiroto Inoue (Mitsubishi Hitachi Nagasaki) and three of the Asahi Kasei team's star new recruits, Kota Murayama, Shuho Dairokuno and Takashi Ichida.

The women's 10000 m was not quite as fast but still started quick, with Misaki Kato (Team Kyudenko) and Keiko Nogami (Team Juhachi Ginko) going after the sub-32:00.00 Beijing World Championships standard.  The pace slowed off the standard but the pair ran together until the last lap when Kato pulled just ahead to win in 32:13.72.

At the East Japan meet Kenyans William Malel (Team Honda) and Doricah Obare (Team Hitachi) turned in quality 10000 m times to win their races, Malel running 27:57.36 and Obare 32:05.68.  Fresh off a 5000 m PB last weekend in Nobeoka, Ronald Kwemoi (Team Komori Corp.) doubled with 1500 m and 5000 m wins in 3:38.07 and 13:19.33, running down 2013 World XC junior silver medalist Leonard Barsoton (Team Nissin Shokuhin) on the last lap for the 5000 m win.  Kenyan women also took the 5000 m and 3000 m, teammates Grace Kimanzi (Team Starts) winning the 5000 m in 15:41.66 and Rosemary Wanjiru (Team Starts) the 3000 m in 8:57.69.  The men's 5000 m racewalk also made headlines with a 18:51.93 national record from Eiki Takahashi (Team Fujitsu).

The Chugoku region meet, split between this weekend and last, featured the 10000 m distance this week.  Kaido Kita (Team Chugoku Denryoku) and Rei Ohara (Team Tenmaya) took the Chugoku titles in 28:42.12 and 33:30.68.  Regional corporate championship action wraps up next weekend with the Kansai Region meet in Osaka.

Kyushu Corporate Track and Field Championships
Sayagatani Field, Fukuoka, May 16-17, 2015
click here for complete results

Men's 10000 m Heat 3
1. Paul Tanui (Kenya/Kyudenko) – 27:08.21 – WL, MR
2. Kota Murayama (Asahi Kasei) – 28:12.31
3. Hiroto Inoue (Mitsubishi Hitachi Nagasaki) – 28:12.96
4. Shuho Dairokuno (Asahi Kasei) – 28:13.17
5. Takashi Ichida (Asahi Kasei) – 28:17.09
6. Melaku Abera (Ethiopia/Kurosaki Harima) – 28:20.17
7. Kazuya Deguchi (Asahi Kasei) – 28:20.77
8. Shinji Yoshimoto (Kurosaki Harima) – 28:35.02
9. Yuki Arimura (Asahi Kasei) – 28:35.61
10. Kazuharu Takai (Kyudenko) – 28:38.69
—–
17. Masato Imai (Toyota Kyushu) – 28:52.84

Women's 10000 m
1. Misaki Kato (Kyudenko) – 32:13.72
2. Keiko Nogami (Juhachi Ginko) – 32:14.58
3. Chieko Kido (Canon AC Kyushu) – 32:56.31
4. Erika Ikeda (Higo Ginko) – 33:16.25
5. Yuka Koga (Juhachi Ginko) – 33:22.84

Men's 5000 m Heat 2
1. Tomoya Onishi (Asahi Kasei) – 14:13.97
2. Keijiro Mogi (Asahi Kasei) – 14:16.84
3. Taku Miyahara (Mitsubishi Hitachi Nagasaki) – 14:21.35

Women's 5000 m
1. Yuka Miyazaki (Kyudenko) – 15:44.29
2. Eri Hayakawa (Toto) – 16:04.34
3. Chieko Kido (Canon AC Kyushu) – 16:15.26
4. Mariam Waithira (Kenya/Kyudenko) – 16:31.16
5. Hitomi Shimofuji (Canon AC Kyushu) – 16:31.17

Men's 1500 m
1. Kenta Murayama (Asahi Kasei) – 3:50.39
2. Tsukasa Matsuda (Kurosaki Harima) – 3:52.04
3. Keisuke Hirata (Kurosaki Harima) – 3:52.52

East Japan Corporate Track and Field Championships
Kumagaya Sports Park Field, Kumagaya, Saitama, May 16-17, 2015
click here for complete results

Men's 10000 m
1. William Malel (Kenya/Honda) – 27:57.36
2. Benjamin Ngandu (Kenya/Monteroza) – 28:27.01
3. Hiroyuki Yamamoto (Konica Minolta) – 28:36.25
4. Tsuyoshi Ugachi (Konica Minolta) – 28:38.19
5. Masaru Aoki (Kanebo) – 29:08.97

Women's 10000 m
1. Doricah Obare (Kenya/Hitachi) – 32:05.68
2. Hitomi Nakamura (Panasonic) – 33:04.06
3. Rika Toguchi (Route Inn Hotels) – 33:06.05
4. Asami Kato (Panasonic) – 33:07.58
5. Miho Ihara (Sekisui Kagaku) – 33:08.60

Men's 5000 m Heat 4
1. Ronald Kwemoi (Kenya/Komori Corp.) – 13:19.33
2. Leonard Barsoton (Kenya/Nissin Shokuhin) – 13:22.91
3. Bernard Kimanyi (Kenya/Yakult) – 13:29.43
4. Kassa Mekashaw (Ethiopia/Yachiyo Kogyo) – 13:37.18
5. Paul Kuira (Kenya/Konica Minolta) – 13:40.59
6. David Njuguna (Kenya/Yakult) – 13:40.87
7. Yuichiro Ueno (DeNA RC) – 13:42.48
8. Edwin Mokua (Kenya/Nissin Shokuhin) – 13:51.22
9. Samuel Mwangi (Kenya/Konica Minolta) – 13:52.99
10. Johana Maina (Kenya/Fujitsu) – 13:55.46

Women's 5000 m Heat 2
1. Grace Kimanzi (Kenya/Starts) – 15:41.66
2. Yuika Mori (Yamada Denki) – 15:45.34
3. Felista Wanjugu (Kenya/Univ. Ent.) – 15:47.18
4. Kasumi Nishihara (Yamada Denki) – 15:55.10
5. Shiho Takechi (Yamada Denki) – 15:59.81

Women's 3000 m
1. Rosemary Wanjiru (Kenya/Starts) – 8:57.69
2. Azusa Sumi (Univ. Ent.) – 9:01.15
3. Miho Shimizu (Hokuren) – 9:05.39
4. Kaori Morita (Panasonic) – 9:16.17
5. Tomomi Tanaka (Daiichi Seimei) – 9:20.21

Men's 1500 m
1. Ronald Kwemoi (Kenya/Komori Corp.) – 3:38.07
2. David Njuguna (Kenya/Yakult) – 3:41.12
3. Yasunari Kusu (Komori Corp.) – 3:46.07
4. Hikaru Kato (JR Higashi Nihon) – 3:46.31
5. Yoshihiro Nishizawa (Komori Corp.) – 3:47.04

Women's 1500 m
1. Chihiro Sunaga (Shiseido) – 4:19.14
2. Misaki Onishi (Sekisui Kagaku) – 4:20.93
3. Tomoka Kimura (Univ. Ent.) – 4:21.29

Men's 5000 m RW
1. Eiki Takahashi (Fujitsu) – 18:51.93 – NR
2. Hirooki Arai (SDF Academy) – 19:18.19
3. Kai Kobayashi (Bic Camera) – 19:20.05

Chugoku Corporate Track and Field Championships
Miyoshi Field, Hiroshima, May 16, 2015
click here for complete results

Men's 10000 m Heat 2
1. Kaido Kita (Chugoku Denryoku) – 28:42.12
2. Taku Fujikawa (Chugoku Denryoku) – 28:43.80
3. Mizuho Tanaka (Mazda) – 28:45.32
4. Rui Yonezawa (Chugoku Denryoku) – 28:50.17
5. Masato Sumimoto (Mazda) – 29:08.97

Women's 10000 m
1. Rei Ohara (Tenmaya) – 33:30.68
2. Yurie Fujita (Tenmaya) – 33:37.17
3. Yukari Ishizawa (Edion) – 33:44.93

(c) 2015 Brett Larner
all rights reserved

by Brett Larner – Japan Running News