World Leads at Hyogo Relay Carnival and Nittai Time Trials – Day One Report – by Brett Larner – Japan Running News

Two big two-day meets got started Saturday, turning out two world-leading times.  At the Hyogo Relay Carnival the Asics Challenge events serve as the B-heats ahead of Sunday's Olympic selection Grand Prix races, but there was nothing second-tier in the men's 10000 m as James Mwangi (Team NTN) ran a world-leading 27:23.04 to lead six men, all Kenya, under 28 minutes. 

Mwangi's time took more than 9 seconds off the meet record set in way back in 2005 by the late great Samuel Wanjiru.  Fabiano Sulle (Tanzania) was the top non-Kenyan at 7th in 28:01.76.

Second-year Dominic Nyairo (Yamanashi Gakuin Univ.) led the collegiate results in 3rd in 27:56.47.  Tokai University dominated Heat Two of the 10000 m with three runners, two of them first-years, going sub-29 led by first-year Hayato Seki with the win in 28:48.63.  Toyo University first-year Sota Watanabe also cleared 29, just, running 28:59.77 for 10th.  Many more university men broke 29 at the Nittai Time Trials meet, led by Stanley Siteki (Tokyo Kokusai Univ.) in 28:39.29, pointing to an exciting hear ahead on the university ekiden circuit.

The other world-leading run came at Nittai as Kenyan Helen Ekarare (Sendai Ikuei H.S.) ran 8:56.92 to win the women's 3000 m A-heat, followed closely by rival Monica Margaret (Aomori Yamada H.S.) in 8:58.93.  Natsumi Yoshida (Route Inn Hotels) topped the Nittai women's 5000 m A-heat in 15:51.55, but back in Hyogo Hisami Ishii (Yamada Denki) turned in a bigger run, delivering the fastest Japanese women's 5000 m so far this year with a 15:39.92 in the Asics Challenge Women's 5000 m, the only runner there to break 16.  Both Hyogo and Nittai continue tomorrow.

64th Hyogo Relay Carnival – Day One Highlights
Universiade Memorial Stadium, Kobe, Hyogo, 4/23/16
click here for complete results

Asics Challenge Men's 10000 m Heat One
1. James Mwangi (Kenya/NTN) – 27:23.04 – WL, MR
2. Alexander Mutiso (Kenya/ND Software) – 27:47.20
3. Dominic Nyairo (Kenya/Yamanashi Gakuin Univ.) – 27:56.47
4. Patrick Muendo Muwaka (Kenya/Aisan Kogyo) – 27:56.97
5. Charles Ndungu (Kenya/Komori Corp.) – 27:57.36
6. Macharia Ndirangu (Kenya/Aichi Seiko) – 27:57.57
7. Fabiano Sulle (Tanzania) – 28:01.53
8. Silas Kingori (Kenya/SGH Group) – 28:01.76
9. Hiram Ngatia (Kenya/Toyota) – 28:05.56
10. Alex Mwangi (Kenya/YKK) – 28:26.11

Asics Challenge Men's 10000 m Heat 2
1. Hayato Seki (Tokai Univ.) – 28:48.63
2. Hiroyuki Ishikawa (Aisan Kogyo) – 28:49.11
3. Junji Katakawa (Suzuki Hamamatsu AC) – 28:52.21
4. Kento Otsu (Toyota Kyushu) – 28:53.66
5. Ryutaro Ichitani (Yamanashi Gakuin Univ.) – 28:55.14
6. Kazuto Kawabata (Tokai Univ.) – 28:55.26
7. Shota Onizuka (Tokai Univ.) – 28:55.26
8. Kazuki Muramoto (Sumitomo Denko) – 28:55.45
9. Daisuke Koyama (Chudenko) – 28:56.71
10. Sota Watanabe (Toyo Univ.) – 28:59.77

Asics Challenge Women's 5000 m
1. Hisami Ishii (Yamada Denki) – 15:39.92
2. Sakie Arai (Osaka Gakuin Univ.) – 16:00.59
3. Kasumi Nishihara (Yamada Denki) – 16:00.66
4. Nami Hashimoto (Denso) – 16:02.63
5. Ayano Ikemitsu (Kagoshima Ginko) – 16:04.29

249th Nittai University Time Trials – Day One Highlights
Nittai University, Yokohama, Kanagawa, 4/23/16
click here for complete results

Women's 3000 m Heat 5
1. Helen Ekarare (Kenya/Sendai Ikuei H.S.) – 8:56.92 – WL
2. Monica Margaret (Kenya/Aomori Yamada H.S.) – 8:58.93
3. Tomoka Kimura (Universal Entertainment) – 9:10.12
4. Wakana Kabasawa (Tokiwa H.S.) – 9:11.32
5. Yumika Nagahama (Miura Gakuen H.S.) – 9:22.23

Women's 5000 m Heat 4
1. Natsumi Yoshida (Route Inn Hotels) – 15:51.55
2. Yuma Adachi (Kyocera) – 15:51.56
3. Satomi Ueta (Kyocera) – 15:52.08
4. Yuri Nozoe (Mitsui Sumitomo Kaijo) – 15:59.69
5. Harumi Okamoto (Mitsui Sumitomo Kaijo) – 16:01.57

Men's 10000 m Heat 8
1. John Maina (Kenya/Fujitsu) – 27:43.70
2. Daniel Muiva Kitonyi (Kenya/Kanebo) – 28:04.22
3. Johana Maina (Kenya/Fujitsu) – 28:18.45
4. Yuta Shitara (Honda) – 28:19.43
5. Stanley Siteki (Kenya/Tokyo Kokusai Univ.) – 28:39.29
6. Titus Mogusu (Kenya/Tokyo Kokusai Univ.) – 28:39.68
7. Naoki Kudo (Komazawa Univ.) – 28:40.31
8. Simon Kariuki (Kenya/Nihon Yakka Univ.) – 28:40.86
9. Shogo Nakamura (Fujitsu) – 28:44.44
10. Yuki Matsumura (Honda) – 28:44.83

© 2016 Brett Larner
all rights reserved

by Brett Larner – Japan Running News