RECENT NEWS
Lidia Simon Preps in Boulder for Osaka International Ladies Marathon
Kansai TV crew in town to prepare feature for January 31st race
January 5, 2010
Japan Takes 2nd in International Team Challenge at 9th Annual Rock n Roll Half-Marathon
Miyauchi 4th, Hirata 5th for Women; Fujiyama 5th, Matusimiya 7th for Men
September 7, 2009
Photo by Boulder Wave, Inc.
Freya Murray Takes 1st Place in Great Yorkshire Run
September 6, 2009
Please click here for full article on Freya’s PB Finish.
Training yet again in Boulder’s winter climate for the Osaka International Ladies Marathon, Lidia Simon is aiming to mark her tenth running of the event in strong fashion. A three-time winner in Osaka, Lidia has only once failed to make the Top 8 awards ceremony at Osaka, a 2006 injury-hampered 9th-place finish the only mar on an otherwise perfect record. “My training has been very good so far, and I have been doing more hills than usual. The last few years, the Japanese have gotten away from me just after we come out from the hills of Osaka Castle, so I know this will be the key point again.”
To mark Lidia’s tenth running of the event, the race organizers are planning special ceremonies for her during race week and also at the post-race awards ceremony, with Romania’s Ambassador to Japan among those invited.
Long-time Boulder Wave athlete Kayoko Obata of Japan will also be running her 10th Osaka, but unlike Lidia, Kayoko will be using Osaka as her “Last Run,” retiring from competition after this year’s race.
Kansai TV has had a film crew in Boulder the past two days to do a bit of “up close and personal” on Lidia to use for this year’s pre-race show and race broadcast. The crew spent most of Sunday at Lidia’s north Boulder home filming her with her husband/coach, Liviu, and her son, Cristy, as they prepared dinner, helped Cristy with his homework, and enjoyed a quiet evening at home. On Monday, the crew followed her on a hill workout done on the dirt roads just north of the Boulder Reservoir as she clicked off one interval after the other with no more than a one-second variation in her times.
Lidia is an iconic figure among Japan’s enthusiastic marathon fans, well-known not only for her years of success at Osaka, but also for her silver medal just behind Naoko Takahashi at the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games Marathon and for defeating Reiko Tosa for the gold medal the following summer at the IAAF World Championships in Edmonton.
The event’s Japanese-language website is http://www.osaka-marathon.jp/
Lidia’s history at Osaka
19973rd place in 2:27:04
19981st place in 2:28:31
19991st place in 2:23:24
20001st place in 2:22:54
20055th place in 2:27:01
20069th place in 2:33:53
20076th place in 2:32:09
20086th place in 2:27:17
20095th place in 2:27:14
2010??
Lidia also had an excellent 5th-place result at the 2007 IAAF Osaka World Championships marathon held on the same course in the steambath conditions of summer in Japan.
(Photos Courtesy of Peter Wayne Photography)
3rd-4th-5th For Three Boulder Wave Women at Osaka!
Mari Ozaki, Lidia Simon, Kayoko Obata come through on cold, wet day
February 1, 2010
In steadily worsening race conditions that saw temperatures never rise above the low 40s (5-6 degrees Celsius) and rain fall steadily over the final 10 kilometers, a trio of women represented by Boulder Wave came through in stellar fashion in yesterday’s Osaka International ladies Marathon. Mari Ozaki, whose Noritz club re-signed with Boulder Wave shortly before the race, came home in 3rd place overall and top Japanese in 2:26:27. Osaka legend Lidia Simon, in her 10th running of the Osaka race, finished 4th in 2:27:11. Only once in Lidia’s ten times in the event has she not made the Top Eight awards ceremony, and she is also a three-time champion of the race. Throughout the week Lidia was feted with various events to mark her tenth running, such as a special addition of “Simon Udon” noodles at the host hotel’s menu. Despite prepping for Osaka in the winter conditions of Boulder, Colorado, including one interval session in near-zero Fahrenheit temperatures, Lidia’s first words upon crossing the line in Nagai Stadium were simply, “I am SO cold!” Just behind Lidia, long-time Boulder Wave athlete Kayoko Obata marked the final race of her competitive career with a strong 2:27:19 for 5th. Not bad for age 38! Kayoko was also running Osaka for her 10th time, and both she and Lidia were feted with special gifts and ceremonies at the evening’s awards ceremony. Among other accomplishments, including an 8th-place finish in the 1999 Seville world championships, Kayoko says she is most proud of having finished all 26 of the marathons she started in her elite career.
Tokyo Marathon Set For Sunday
Four Boulder Wave Athletes in Japan’s Biggest Event
February 22, 2010
Led by women’s defending champion Mizuho Nasukawa, four athletes represented by Boulder Wave are in the elite invited field for this Sunday’s 4th running of the revamped Tokyo Marathon. The city-wide event, which was opened to the masses in 2007, immediately became Japan’s #1 Must-Do event when it was revamped in 2007 to include a mass field with an elite field of men and women, which had previously only been done in Hokkaido’s much smaller summer marathon. Boulder Wave athlete Daniel Njenga won the inaugural race in 2007. Last summer, over 300,000 runners applied for the 2010 race, the largest applicant field in the history of big-city marathoning. Mizuho won last year’s wind-swept race in a 2:25:38 PB. Akemi Ozaki Ishige of Japan’s Second Wind AC will look to challenge, seeking to improve on the 2:27:23 PB she posted in finishing second in last summer’s Hokkaido Marathon. Nuta Olaru of Romania/ASICS has spent the past week staying with Japan’s Sakura AC team, and is the fastest woman in the field with her 2:24:33 PB from Chicago in 2004. Last year Nuta had yet another solid season on the roads, including 2nd place in Houston in 2:27:24, 3rd place in Rock ‘n’ Roll San Diego in 2:30:40, and 2nd in the Rock ‘n’ Roll Seattle Half-Marathon in 71:43. On the men’s side, Japan-based James Mwangi Macharia will look to race up front and make a strong improvement on his 2:10:27 marathon debut from 2007 Vienna. James’ training has gone well, with a 27:49.27 PB last autumn, and steady work at altitude in Kenya. Boulder Wave also represents Morocco’s Rachid Kisri in his Japanese racing, and Rachid enters Tokyo as the fastest man in the filed, with a 2:06:48 PB from last year’s Paris Marathon.
Rene Kalmer Wraps Up European Indoor Tour
Three PB’s in Four Races Highlighted by South African 1500m and 3000m Indoor Records!
February 15, 2010
Running for adidas since last summer, Rene Kalmer continues to impress with her wide range, having swept last summer’s Spar women’s 10K series of races in South Africa; posted a very impressive 70:37 half-marathon PB at the IAAF World Half-Marathon Championships in Birmingham, England; and even set a new course record in winning the Nedbank Soweto Marathon in November. In total, Rene posted new PB’s for six distances last year (5K, 4 Miles, 10K, 10 Miles, Half-Marathon, Marathon), and has now added to that with as Hat Trick of PB’s over the indoor 1500m, 3000m, and 5000m. Her 2010 European indoor tour began with a 9:12.72 for 4th place at the BW-Bank Meeting in Karlsruhe, Germany, on January 31st. A week later at the Sparkassen meet in Stuttgart, she brought South Africa’s indoor 3000m record down to 9:02.92. Four nights later on Stockholm’s fast indoor track, she posted another indoor PB with 15:45.40 for 5000m at the GE Galan. Yesterday she capped off the tour with her third consecutive PB and second NR with a 4:16.96 mark for 1500m at the Toyota Indoor in Gent, Belgium.
Heading back home for the warmth of South Africa’s summer, Rene plans to continue her track running with the Yellow Pages Series through early April, and then the national championships on March 19-20. A return to the roads will begin with the Two Oceans Half-Marathon on April 3rd.
Daniel Njenga Continues Resurgence with 2nd in Beppu-Oita
2:10:55 on Oceanside Course His Fastest Time since 2008 Chicago
February 8, 2010
Returning to the seaside Beppu-Oita Mainichi Maratghon for the first time since his breakthrough year of 2002, Daniel Njenga threw his all into winning the title. As the lead pack steadily dwindled despite a relatively sluggish pace (the official pacemakers brought the pack through halfway in only 65:24, despite the event’s best weather in years), Daniel steadily stuck with the leaders. Striking at 40K, he made a strong move, catching the other three leaders off guard and quickly gaining a 15m advantage. Only Kenya’s Jonathan Kipkorir was able to respond, drawing even with Daniel shortly before the turn into the stadium finish line. With 500m to go, Kipkorir opened a 10, then 20 meter gap, holding it to the finish to win in 2:10:50 to Daniel’s 2:10:55. Disappointed over losing in such painful fashion, Daniel was able to put the race in perspective. After a year and a half in the wilderness in 2008 and the first half of 2009 when he did not break 2:14 in three consecutive marathons following his sixth straight Top Three finish in the Chicago Marathon, Daniel has now won last summer’s Hokkaido Marathon in 2:12:03 and finished 2nd in Oita yesterday. “Yes, of course I wanted to win, and I thought I had it with 1 kilometer remaining. But Jonathan just had too strong of a kick for me at the end. But I am happy to have another good race. Next week I will return home to Nyahururu [Daniel has been based in Japan for much of the past 18 years, running professionally for Japan’s Yakult-sponsored corporate team] and spend about two month’s with Monica and our daughter.”
Freya Murray on Her Way to Fukuoka International Cross-Country
First Japan Race for Rising Scotland Star
February 21, 2010
Scotland’s Freya Murray will return to Japan next Saturday for the third time, with an invitation to participate in the Fukuoka International Cross-Country Meet. The women’s 6 kilometer race will be held on the same Umino-Nakamichikaihin Park course that hosted the 2006 IAAF World Cross-Country Championships, in which Freya finished 64th in the short-course 4.0 race. She also represented the UK in the 2008 Chiba International Ekiden, finishing 4th in her 5K leg in 16:08. Under the guidance of reserved Welshman Steve Jones, Freya has been rocketing up the charts since last Summer, with the UK 5000m Championship win and a pair of victories over 5K and 10K at the Great Run series of races among her accomplishments. This winter she has been faring well on the Cross-Country circuit, with 2nd in Liverpool, 9th in the European Championships in Dublin, 6th in Brussels, and 8th in Great Edinburgh. Escaping the Scottish blizzards for a three-week training camp in South Africa, Freya also posted a nice win there in the South African Cross-Country Championships.
2nd for Freya Murray at Fukuoka Cross
February 28, 2010
Scotland's Freya Murray continued her rise up the charts with a very nice 2nd place finish at the Fukuoka Cross-Country meet in Japan on Saturday (February 27, 2010). Despite snow-induced delays on her travel to Japan that saw her not finally arrive until close to midnight on Thursday, Freya did a good job of running aggressively and setting the pace at the 6 km race. With about 1200m remaining, she began opening a small gap on the field, eventually getting it to about 15m; but, with 500m remaining, Japan's Kazue Kojima drew up along side, and then began her own breakaway. Freya stormed back in the home straight, only to come up short by a meter or two, with the two timed in 19:32 and 19:33.
Here is the link to the IAAF article on the meet: http://www.iaaf.org/CROS10/news/newsid=55672.html
Nuta Olaru Takes 3rd at Tokyo Marathon in Nasty Conditions
March 1, 2010
Facing terrible weather conditions today in the Tokyo Marathon, Romania's Nuta Olaru ran a superb race to finish 3rd in Japan's biggest international marathon. In windy conditions of -2C to +3C degrees, with rain and snow falling throughout the race, the field of 30,000 runners faced the toughest conditions in the history of the race. Russia's Alevtina Biktimirova escaped early from the lead pack from about 12 K and accompanied by a group of Japanese men gradually extended her lead. Olaru ran the first half carefully, at one point in 8th place. Over the second half of the race, as the weather become worse and worse and the rain changed to snow, Olaru caught one runner after the other, passing Ethiopia's Robe Guta to gain 2nd place at the 30 km point. "My legs felt very strong, and even though it was extremely cold, I felt I could go well in the second half. Unfortunately, I had stomach problems the final 8 km, and had to hold back a little bit. Guta caught me at 35 km, but even the last 2 kilometers I thought I might be able to catch her, " said Olaru after the race.
The men had an incredible race, with nine men, including defending champion Salim Kipsang of Kenya and 2:06:48 runner Rachid Kisri of Morocco, still together at the 40-kilometer point. Despite the strong international field, Japanese men took the top 5 places, with Masakazu Fujiwara of the Honda-sponsored team becoming the first Japanese champion in the four year history of the race. The top nine men finished within 57 seconds of each other.
Nuta traveled to Japan two weeks before the race to acclimate to the time difference with her training camp in Boulder, Colorado, USA (16 hours time difference), as well as with the change from high altitude to sea level. For the first week in Japan, she stayed with the club of Japanese legendary coach Yoshio Koide, who has coached such athletes as Yuko Arimori (1992 Barcelona Olympic marathon silver medal and 1996 Atlanta Olympic marathon bronze medal), Hiromi Suzuki (1997 Athens World Championships marathon gold medal), Naoko Takahashi (2000 Sydney Olympic marathon gold medal), and Mizuho Nasukawa (2009 Tokyo Marathon champion).
Coach Dumitru Pop commented after the race: "Being top three in a major IAAF Gold-Medal event such as Tokyo is a great achievement for any runner. I am very proud she made such a good result in such terrible weather."
The IAAF has also posted an article on the race at http://www.iaaf.org/LRR10/news/newsid=55689.html
US Half-Marathon Champion Antonio Vega Signs with Boulder Wave
March 2, 2010
Antonio Vega, the winner of the USA Half-Marathon Championships at Houston in January, has chosen Boulder Wave to be his new Athlete Representative. Antonio lives and trains in St. Paul, Minnesota, where he is a member of Team USA MInnesota, and his shoe company is Mizuno. At Houston, he set a PB by one minute to win in 61:54 over Patrick Smyth (62:01) and Brent Vaughn (62:04). Next up for Antonio will be the Gate River Run 15K on March 14th, which is also the USA 15K Championship, with the BAA Boston Marathon on April 19th as his main Spring target.
Check Out Sara Vaughn’s New Blog Entry on Running Times
March 10, 2010
Running Times has posted Sara Vaughn's second entry in her blog, "the Pregnant Pause." She stopped by Boulder's Cafe Sole this morning while her husband Brent and the rest of Coach Johnson's group were out doing the road portion of today's training. Their daughter Kiki seems to be over any trepidation over the June arrival of a little sister, and was mainly concerned with being certain her hot chocolate did not come with whipped cream. "Over Half Way" is now up on the Running Times website at http://wpblogs.runningtimes.com/blogs/thepregnantpause/
For the next day or two, there is also a good pic of Sara on the home page of Running Times at www.runningtimes.com
Rene Kalmer Through to 3000m Final at IAAF World Indoor Championships in Doha!
Sets National Record; 3rd Indoor NR of the Year
March 12, 2010
Rene Kalmer made it through to the 3000m final today at the IAAF world indoor championship in Doha, setting a new South African record with 9:01.41. Running in the day’s first semi-final, Rene faced an extremely tight field, with the top five women finishing within 1.18 seconds. Rene broke her own record of 9:02.62 that she set last month in Stuttgart. It is Rene’s fourth indoor PB and 3rd National Record in the 2010 indoor season.
The final will be at 4:55 p.m. tomorrow afternoon.
Justin Young, Antonio Vega at Gate River Run/US 15K Championship This Weekend
March 11, 2010
Justin Young (Strands/Mizuno) and Antonio Vega (Team USA MInnesota/Mizuno) are in Jacksonville, Florida, for tomorrow's Gate River Run 15K, which is also serving as this year's US 15K National Championship. Justin's 15K PB of 44:47 was set at the 2007 Gate River Run, and he is prepping for the April 18th Vienna City Marathon in Austria. Antonio's PB is nearly identical, 44:45 set at last year's Gate River. World Cross will be next up for Antonio, followed by the Boston Marathon on April 19th.
Freya Murray Looking to Qualify for World Cross
March 11, 2010
Freya Murray will be in action this coming weekend at Cofton Park in Birmingham, UK, looking to try to win the senior women's race and also to secure a spot on the team for the upcoming IAAF World Cross-Country Championships (Bydgoszcz, Poland, on March 28th). The day's races will combine the McCain Cross Challenge Final and the UK Athletics' World Cross-Country Trials. Freya's most recent race was her second place finish at the Fukuoka International Cross two weeks ago. She writes, "I'm looking forward to my race on Saturday, and then hopefully Poland! I can't believe I only have one or two cross country races left, this season has flown by."
Here is a link to a preview article on the UK Athletics website:
http://www.uka.org.uk/media/news/march-2010/11-03-10-trials-preview/
Quick Preview Of March 21st Racing
Constantina Dita Back in Action at the Lisbon Half-Marathon
March 12, 2010
Next weekend will be packed with racing around the world, as a number of major long-distance road events take place.
Constantina Dita at Lisbon Half-Marathon
In her first race since wrapping up her 2009 race season with 2nd place at the Wincanton Montferland Run 15K in the Netherlands, Olympic champ Constantina will compete in the storied Lisbon Half Marathon. “My training has been going very well. I did a lot of long strength work in January and February and the past few weeks have been working on my speed.” Next month Constantina will be in London for the Virgin London Marathon and looks to Lisbon as a good quick race to test herself.
Kiyoko Shimahara at NYC Half-Marathon
Coming off a stellar 2009 in which she won the Hokkaido Marathon in a new PB and Course Record of 2:25:10 and finished 2nd in both the Yokohama International Women’s Marathon and Honolulu Marathon, Kiyoko Shimahara will be at one of America’s premier half-marathons, the New York City Half Marathon, put on by the New York Road Runners. Kiyoko expects to improve significantly on her 10th place finish in the 2008 version of the race, which was held in hot, humid, and generally unpleasant summer conditions.
Edna Kiplagat and Gilbert Koech at Honda LA Marathon
Husband and wife Gilbert Koech and Edna Kiplagat have been training this winter in the altitude of Iten, Kenya. After a very good season on the US roads last year, Edna had a solid cross-country season in Kenya, including 4th at the Police Championships. Gilbert will be coming into the race off of his win at the Rock n Roll San Antonio Marathon last November. Los Angeles is breaking out a new course and new format this year, taking much more scenic tour through the City of Angels, starting at Dodger Stadium and finishing at the Santa Monica Pier.
Japan Corporate Half-Marathon Championships
Also on tap for next weekend are the men’s and women’s corporate half-marathon championships in Yamaguchi, Japan, a race that frequently sees as many as 75 or Japanese men under the 65:00 mark. Many of the Japanese athletes represented by Boulder Wave or who train in Boulder each summer will be in the field.
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Victories for Murray, Kano; PB and Podium for Vega; New National Record for Kalmer!
Quick Wrap-Up of a Stellar Weekend
March 15, 2010
Not a bad weekend of action. On Friday in Doha, Rene Kalmer (adidas) set a new South African record of 9:01.41 to take 4th in the first semifinal of the women’s 3000m at the IAAF World Indoor Championships. Rene came back on Saturday with 9th in the final...In Birmingham, England, on Saturday, Scot Freya Murray (adidas) won the UK Trials for the World Cross-Country Championships, and will thereby be on her way to Bydgoszcz, Poland, for the March 28th IAAF World Championships....In Jacksonville, Florida, Antonio Vega (Team USA MInnesota/Mizuno) followed up his January win in the US Half-Marathon Championships with a 3rd place finish at the US 15K Championship and a bright, shiny new PB of 43:56. Also in Jacksonville, Justin Young (Team Strands/Mizuno) ran 46:23 for 22nd. “Not my best race, but this was more than a minute faster than I ran here two years ago when prepping for Rotterdam [where he ran his PB of 2:13:54 that ranked him in the Top Five Americans that year], so I feel on track for Vienna....And the weekend wrapped up with Yuri Kano (Second Wind/Mizuno) winning the title at the Nagoya International Ladies Marathon on Sunday in Japan in 2:27:11.
Edna Kiplagat wins Los Angeles Marathon!!!
March 21, 2010
Edna Kiplagat (Kenya/ASICS) took the women's title today at the Honda Los Angeles Marathon in 2:25:38. Edna broke away from Russia's Silvia Skvortsova after 21 miles and from Ethiopia's Teyba Naser shortly thereafter, and closed out the race with splits of 5:14, 5:09, 5:10 the final three miles to seal the victory. In addition to defeating the women's field, Edna also won "The Challenge" competition in which the elite women's field was given an 18-minute, 47-second head start in front of the elite men and mass field, with a bonus of $100,000 given then to the first man or woman to cross the finish line.
Today was Edna's first race for her new sponsor, ASICS. Many thanks to Ben Cesar for spending time with Edna and her husband Gilbert Koech on Friday to get them properly outfitted with ASICS gear!
In addition to the $100,000 Challenge prize, Edna won $20,000 and a new Honda Insight EX car for the winning the women's race, and a $25,000 time bonus for her 2:25:38 mark.
(Photo courtesy of Rich Cruse/LA Marathon)
Yoshimi Ozaki takes women's title at Japan’s half-marathon championship;
Takayuki Matsumiya 2nd among Japanese men
March 21, 2010
Yoshimi Ozaki (Daiichi Life Insurance/adidas) was the top Japanese finisher on the women's side in today's All-Japan Corporate Half-Marathon Championship in Yamaguchi, Japan. Yoshimi ran 70:06, finishing second only to Japan-based Kenyan Filomena Cheyech (69:01). Yoshimi just returned last week from a three-week training camp in New Zealand. On the men's side, Takayuki Matsumiya (Konica Minolta/ASICS) was 2nd Japanese (7th overall) in 62:45.
Both Yoshimi and Takayuki are preparing for next month's Virgin London Marathon (April 25th). Today's results also qualified both for this autumn's IAAF World Half-Marathon Championship.
Here is a link to the IAAF report on today's race:
Antonio Vega, Justin Young Take 7th, 10th at Crescent City; 7th for Diane Nukuri-Johnson on Women's Side
April 3, 2010
Antonio Vega (Team USA MInnesota/Mizuno) and Justin Young (Team Strands/Mizuno) had good final tune-ups today at the Crescent City Classic 10K in New Orleans for the marathons they will be running in two weeks. Antonio sliced 18 seconds off his 10K PB with a 28:47 run good for 7th overall, and top American. "We went out pretty hard, and my 5K split of 14:05 is my road PB. They made a big move about two and a half miles into the race, maybe about 27 or 28 seconds for 200m. I should have covered it, and then I might have had an even faster time today. But, it feels great, and I'm looking forward to Boston."
Justin Young also hit the top ten, with 10th place overall, and 3rd American, in 29:49. Justin will be running the Vienna City Marathon in Austria on April 18th.
Diane Nukuri-Johnson (Burundi) took 7th in 34:43 in the women's race. "It wasn't a great day. I went out in 5:17, but really felt affected by the humidity. I thought I'd be closer to 33:00 today. It might also be because I was doing a lot of heavy training this winter, and I don't yet have the speed of some of the girls racing every week. I think I'll feel much better next week after taking an easy week between the races." Diane will be back in action next Sunday at the Carlsbad 5000 in California.
Course Record for Rene Kalmer at Two Oceans!
April 3, 2010
Rene Kalmer (Nedbank/adidas) kicked off her 2010 road racing season today with an impressive win at the Old Mutual Two Oceans Half-Marathon in Cape Town, South Africa. Rene's 72:39 run broke the course record of 73:16 set by Namibia's Helali Johannes in 2007, and gave her a 16-second margin over runner-up Irvette van Blerk. Rene's next race will be the SPAR Ladies Cape Town run on April 17th. on April 17th.
Luminita Talpos Going After Third Title in Vienna
March 31, 2010
Luminita Talpos (ASICS) will be going after her third title at the Vienna City Marathon on April 18th. Luminita took back-to-back titles in 2007 and 2008, the latter coming with her Personal Best of 2:26:43. Last year, the race tried a one-year experiment of only inviting marathon debutantes, which kept Luminita from going after the "three-peat."
As usual, Luminita will do her final preparation at sea level, returning to Romania for this training. Before departing, her husband and coach, Daniel Talpos, commented, "The training has been good here in Boulder. We did not have great weather this winter in Boulder, but Luminita did well, and we are looking forward to Vienna again."
The IAAF has posted a nice article and photograph today on their website:
Kiyoko Shimahara Looking for Another Top Finish in Sunday's Nagano Marathon
April 14, 2010
Kiyoko Shimahara (Second Wind AC/Mizuno) will start Sunday's Nagano Marathon in Japan looking to continue her recent two-year stretch of impressive results. Since the autumn of 2008, Kiyoko has finished 3rd in the 2008 Bank of America Chicago Marathon; 1st in the 2008 Honolulu Marathon; 6th in the 2009 Tokyo Marathon; 1st in the 2009 Hokkaido Marathon in a new Course Record and Personal Best of 2:25:10; 2nd in the 2009 Yokohama Marathon; and 2nd in the 2009 Honolulu Marathon. A lot of racing, but she is fully recovered and rested for Sunday's marathon.
Big PB for Alina Istudora in Rotterdam Today
April 14, 2010
Alina Istudora (ASICS/Romania) took more than 13 minutes off her marathon PB at today's Rotterdam Marathon, finishing 6th in 2:33:36. Alina will now wait to see the results of the other Romanian women marathoners this Spring to learn if today’s result gains her selection for the Romanian team at this summer’s European Championships in Barcelona.
Freya Murray Takes Title in Spar Great Ireland Run in Dublin!
April 18, 2010
In her first road race in nearly seven months, Freya Murray (adidas) picked up right where she left off last September, taking the women's title today at the Spar Great Ireland Run 10K in a new PB of 32:30. "I felt really strong throughout. We went out very quick, but it felt OK for me. About seven and a half kilometers, I decided to make a bit of a move, and it worked and I was able to get away from Jo. I've been running nothing but cross-country since the beginning of winter, so I didn't really know how I'd feel on the roads again."
Freya was able to put 15 seconds on runner-up Jo Pavey the final two and a half kilometers, with Benita Willis in 3rd.
In a separate interview, Great Run organizers sent out the following comments from Freya:
" 'I'm over the moon with the win and felt good throughout the race,' said the UK cross country champion. 'Jo just went for it from the start ahead of myself and Benita. She opened a little gap and I sat in until we reached seven-and-half kilometres and an uphill stretch when I managed to pull her in and then get clear.'
Murray clearly benefiting from the coaching of US-based Steve Jones the British marathon record holder, added: 'He's been inspirational with his advice and I'm hoping to go to Boulder in May for another training camp. I'm just delighted with everything. This is only my third 10km race and I've won all of them at the Great Runs in Sheffield and London last year and now here in Dublin.' "
Boston: 7th for Yurika, 12th and Big PB for Antonio!
April 19, 2010
The report is a few days late, but we've been busy sorting out the London travel for all of our athletes and coaches. Two athletes are en route now (Constantina Dita and Mari Ozaki), and the others (Yoshimi Ozaki, Satoshi Irifune, Takayuki Matsumiya) all have confirmed itineraries with their coaches tomorrow out of Tokyo.
Boston. Good runs by our two athletes on Monday. Yurika Nakamura (Tenmaya/ASICS) finished 7th in 2:30:40, a solid result in a tough field. "I was surprised at the slow pace at the beginning. It seemed nobody wanted to make a good pace at first." Yurika and the leading women's group came through 5K in 17:05, 10K in 35:06, and 15K in 53:04. "I missed some training in January and February. From the end of February I trained very well, but I can see it was not enough." Over the meat of the Newton hills, Yurika slipped to a 19:00 split for 30K to 35K, and temporarily dropped out of the top 10. She rallied nicely over the closing miles, with 17:38 from 35K to 40K, and 7:30 the final 2.195K, pulling herself back to 7th place. It is tough to get Boston training and the course dead right on the first time out, so this was a good day's showing for Yurika.
Antonio Vega (Team USA MInnesota/Mizuno) handled his first Boston in great fashion. Running with teammate Jason Lehmkuhle and others for much of the opening half, Antonio came through 13.1 in 64:54, not too much faster than the first half pace he had planned of a low 65. "It was good, but by ten miles, I was starting to feel the effects of the downhills." Antonio said he was still close to 2:11 pace through 23 miles, but "I think I lost more than two minutes the final three miles." He crossed the Boylston Street finish in 2:13:47, good for 12th in the stacked men's field this year. One way to look at it is he is now within 5K of being a 2:11 marathoner. This was only his third time at the marathon distance, dropping nearly two minutes off the PB he set last October in Twin Cities. It is also his 4th PB in 4 road races this year, the others coming at the US Half-Marathon Championship (won in 61:54), Gate River Run/US Championships 15K (3rd in 43:56), and the Crescent City 10K (28:47). His plan is to take a thorough recovery, and then build up toward some summer road racing.
As a late addition to Friday's Qatar Athletic Super Grand Prix in Doha, Rene Kalmer (adidas/South Africa) didn't have the highest hopes for a strong result. We'll let her describe race week in her own words:
"I got informed late Tuesday evening that I could run Friday in Doha. I was recovering in front of the TV after a hard training session, 5x1600m, not the ideal session before a 1500m race. My coach wasn't really confident that I should go and run, as we haven't done any speed training to sharpen up for a 1500m race. I just had to follow my gut feeling, as i really wanted to run in Doha. I knew it was going to be a gamble, but I had to take the chance. It was hectic to get everything organized in time. I got kicked off my connecting flight from Dubai to Doha as my visa was not ready yet. I had to wait for 9 hours in the airport for my visa."
"Just before we went on the track for our race, we got our electronic numbers. There was not a number for me, just the electronic device. After a lot of stressful moments, I got a hand-written number. On the start line, I just thought 'Let's get this race over and done with.'"
"I can't remember anything of the race and I still can't believe I qualified for Commonwealth Games. Now the stress of chasing qualifying times is over and I can enjoy the rest of my races. I'm really looking forward to the rest of the season and to run really fast."
Rene plans one more 1500m, then to come to the United States to compete in several road races in June and early July.
4:07.89 Commonwealth Games Qualifier for Rene Kalmer in Doha
May 17, 2010
Freya Murray (adidas) received confirmation yesterday that she will be on the UK team for next month's European Cup 10,000m, always one of Europe's best opportunities to post fast times. Freya is training in Boulder, Colorado, under the brilliant guidance of Coach Steve Jones through the end of May. The meet will be held in Marseilles, France, on June 5th.
Freya Selected for UK Team at European Cup 10,000m
May 19, 2010
Constantina Dita in Switzerland for ASICS/Intersport Promotion
May 4, 2010
Constantina arrived in Berne, Switzerland, today for a two-day promotion she is doing on behalf of ASICS for the Intersport retail group. Intersport is Europe's largest sporting goods retail chain, with over 5,200 stores worldwide.
Jacques Valentin, the Manager of European Promotions for ASICS Europe, met Constantina at Zurich airport today and then they travelled by rail to Berne. Jacques told us, "ASICS has just signed a very favorable retail deal with Intersport, and having Constantina here to help kick off the relationship us ideal. 70-75 of the main buyers for Intersport from across the various European markets will be in Berne for this. We will do a presentation on ASICS new collection. We've also prepared a new promotional video on Constantina and will show it for the first time to this group of buyers this evening. Constantina will do a question-and-answer session with them, and then we'll have a barbecue party. Tomorrow she'll join them for a morning run in Berne, and many of them have already told me they are looking forward to the chance to run with the Olympic champion."
Mizuho Nasukawa (ASICS/Aruze) hits the cover of the upcoming June issue of Japan's largest running magazine, "Runners." Inside the magazine, she is featured in a one-page story that is part of Runners' ongoing "Running Beauty" series. Despite having already won last year's Tokyo Marathon, in the new article Mizuho discusses the need to become a bit tougher, and also ramp up her mileage; remarks on the trend toward fashionable running clothes among regular runners in Japan; and comments on her head coach Yoshio Koide's encouragement that his athletes always eat well and abundantly. She told us this morning, "I wish Runners had chosen another photo...I look too nervous in this picture! But my Mom and Dad will like it."
Coach Koide (Koide-kantoku, as he is addressed in Japan) is one of the most renowned marathon coaches in history, having guided Yuko Arimori (1992 Barcelona silver and 1996 Atlanta Bronze), Hiromi Suzuki (1997 Athens world championships gold), and Naoko Takahashi (2000 Sydney gold and history's first woman under 2:20), as well as some 20 other women under the 2:30:00 mark.
Mizuho is training in Boulder, Colorado,with five of her teammates through the end of May. Her main focus this summer is the July 4th Sapporo Half-Marathon in Japan.
"Runners" Magazine Cover for Mizuho Nasukawa
May 5, 2010
Video Interview with Adriana Pirtea Before Winning Half-Marathon
May 11, 2010
The Coloradoan website interviewed Adriana Pirtea at home in advance of last Sunday's Colorado Marathon events in her adopted hometown of Fort Collins, Colorado. In the interview, Adriana discusses wanting to break the half-marathon course record, which she then accomplished with a 75:40 mark in 5000-5200 foot (1525-1585 meters) altitude. In the men's half-marathon, Adriana's husband Jeremy Nelson nailed 3rd place. In June, Adriana plans to compete in three major road races on the US circuit.
Click here to link to the video.
One of our newest athletes, Diane Nukuri Johnson of Burundi and now Iowa, has quite a life story to tell. Several publications in her adopted home state of Iowa have covered Diane in the past few years, detailing her life’s story from running back and forth to school while growing up in Burundi, to her experiences in civil war at home while still a child, to her appearance at age 15 as Burundi’s sole female track and field athlete at the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games.
The articles track Diane’s education from catholic school in Canada, to Butler Community College in Wichita, Kansas where Diane was nine-time Juco national champion, winning two titles each in the mile, 3000 meters, 5000 meters, and half marathon, and one title in cross-country. Diane then made the transition in 2006 to the University of Iowa, where she blossomed under the tutledge of head coach Layne Anderson. Diane became the school’s first-ever regional champion and went on to place eighth at the 2007 NCAA Division I Cross-Country Championship Meet where she was an All American.
Diane is now a multi-lingual 25 year-old married college graduate. She is focusing her sights on a marathon debut this autumn, and longer term on the 2012 London Olympic Games. She still lives in Iowa City, training under Anderson’s direction. As she looks to the future and behind, Diane says on the importance of running, “without it, I would be nowhere. Running was my way out.” Fiona Fallon, a former Iowa teammate summed up Nukuri’s impact best. “she’s an amazing person on and off the field. She leads by example. We were brought up in our own world, and sometimes we may forget how much harder someone had to work to get where they are.”
See below for two stories with more details on Diane, as well as a pair of Flotrack interviews.
“Running to the Future” in The Daily Iowan, November 13, 2007
“Former Harrier Nukuri trains for second Olympics” in the Daily Iowan, May 13, 2010
“Diane Nukuri’s Story.” Flotrack video interview, September 1, 2009
Get acquainted with Diane Nukuri Johnson
‘Without running, I would be nowhere.’
May 24, 2010
Photo courtesy of Victah Sailer/PhotoRun
