Otsu, Japan 65th Running of Japan's Oldest Marathon, Lake Biwa Mainichi Marathon
Press Release
March 5, 2010
In the land of Marathon Madness, it could be called Marathon Madness
Month as for 3 consecutive Sundays the classic distance will be competed. Two
IAAF Gold Label Marathons are held and an IAAF Silver Label
Marathon event for the Nagoya International Woman's Marathon is held as well. Last
weekend was the IAAF Gold Label event in the Tokyo Marathon, this
Sunday will be Japan's other IAAF Gold Label Marathon and the oldest
marathon in Japan, the 65th running of the Lake Biwa Mainchi Marathon
in Otsu, a 45 minute train ride from the 2007 World Outdoor
Championships course in Osaka. 200,000 spectators are expected along the
marathon route and another 9,000 in the very small Otsu Stadium, where
the race will start and finish.
A very strong field international field is assembled to attempt to
break the 2001 course record of Antonio Pena (ESP) in 2.07:34. The top 3
men have run faster then the current course record. The most
recognizable in this field is the 2004 ING NYC Marathon Champion,
Hendrick Ramaala of South Africa with a best of 2.06:30 from one his
top-10 places in the FLORA London Marathons. Ramaala, has run the
London Marathon 8 times and finished all in the top-10. "This is much
more calm than the pressure of running in London. In London, they are
always expecting a world record. This is so nice."
Asked about his missing the finishline tape at the 2004 ING NYC
Marathon, "I didn't see it (finishline tape), I can see, but when I want
to watch TV I wear my glasses, and I also wore them to pass my driving
test. I don't like to wear my glasses." Funny because he was taking a
course tour today, to see the turns, but wasn't wearing his (TV)
glasses.
In the last ten years, Ramaala has not run in London only in 2002 and 2004. [One of those years] he won the 2004 Mumbai Marathon, "it was nuts at the finish,
the photographers and everyone surrounded me with their joy".
Ramaala,
a Law Graduate with a South African best of 27.29.4 for 10,000 meters
on the track has 2 children, Alex 10 and Sarah 2. His daughter Sarah is
named after his mom. Ramaala came from of family of 8, where he was the
third boy, and has 2 younger sisters. His last race was the 2009 ING
NYC Marathon and has trained well the last 3 months, doing hills in
December and most of his training is in Johannesburg's Herman Eckstein
Park and Zoo. This will be his third race in Japan, 1996 Chiba Ekiden
Relay and the 2007 World Outdoor Championships [being the others].
The 38 year old South African won back-to-back IAAF World Half
Marathon Championship in 1998-99. But his most imfamous moment came at
the 2005 ING NYC Marathon in which he, and the World Record Holder of
the Marathon, Paul Tergat, raced stride for stride until the last 10
meters of the closest finish in NYC Marathon History. (Tergat won)
Ramaala will have strong competition from a field of Internationals,
and the always powerful domestic group of Japanese runners. Yemane
Tsegay (ETH) has a personal best of 2.06:30 from 2009 Paris Marathon,
and was just out of the medals of the recent 2009 World Outdoor
Championships Marathon in Berlin finishing 4th. A newcomer to the
marathon with a sub-60 minute half marathon best of 59:44 and a debut
in last fall's 2009 Bank of America Chicago Marathon, Charles
Munyeki (KEN), 2.07.06 PB. The Japanese Shimizu Twins will give Japan it's
best hope of a champion on home soil.
Here is the field:
Yemane Tsegay 2.06:30 Ethiopia
Hendrick Ramaala 2.06.55 South Africa
Charles Munyeki 2.07:06 Kenya
Abrahim Tadesse 2.10:09 Eritrea
Yuriy Hychun 2.10:59 Ukraine
Masaya Shimizu 2.10:50 Japan
Tomoya Shimizu 2.09:23 Japan
Tomoyuki Sato 2.09:43 Japan
Yukihiro Kitaoka debut Japan
Laban Kagika 2.10:24 Kenya
Toshiya Katayama 2.10:12 Japan
Kenjiro Jitsui 2.08:50 Japan....age 41
Mark Tucker 2.13:49 Australia...trying to run a pr with 66.00 half split
Tomonori Watanabe2.09:40 Japan
Dan Hornery 2.25:45 Australia...trying to run Commonwealth Games Standard of 2.17
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