Kyoto prefecture won the 24th annual InterPrefectural Women’s Ekiden in with 2:15:26. The race was contested over a nine-stage 42.195Km course in Kyoto, Japan, yesterday (15). The time was seven seconds short of the record, 2:15:19, set by Kumamoto prefecture in 1997, but was the second fastest time in history.
- With high school senior Hitomi Niiya recording the stage best of 19:15 in the uphill 6Km, Okayama prefecture took over the lead after the stage one
- In the 4km second stage, high school junior Yuriko Kobayashi, silver medallist at 1500m in the 2005 World Youth Championships, passed 12 runners and recorded a huge stage record, 12:17. Her team, Hyogo moved up to fifth place, while the favourites Kyoto were in seventh place 32 seconds behind the leader Saitama.
- In the 3km third stage, the stage reserved exclusively for the junior high school runners, Ayuko Suzuki recorded a stage best of 9:27.
- In the 4km fourth stage, Kyoto started to make their move. Mari Ozaki, who was 15th at the marathon in Helsinki, moved her team Kyoto up from seventh to the first, with a 12:43, new stage record, turning a 22 seconds deficit into two seconds advantage by the end of the fourth stage. She took over the lead with only 60m left in the stage.
With the next four runners for Kyoto running well (they all recorded fourth best time or better for each stage), Kyoto stayed in the front. At the beginning of the ninth and the final stage, Kyoto was 36 seconds ahead of second place Saitama. Because Kyoto’s anchor woman was Kayoko Fukushi, national record holder at 3000m and 5000m, their victory was all but certain. The only relevant question was whether Kyoto can set a new stage record. Although Fukushi started her 10km stage 24 seconds ahead of the record pace, she took 31:32 for the final 10km, 40 seconds longer than her stage record of 30:52, and Kyoto was seven seconds short of the course record, 2:15:19. However, it was the second straight victory for Kyoto as well as their tenth victory in the history of this ekiden.
Ken Nakamura for the IAAF
Results:
1) Kyoto 2:15:26
2) Saitama 2:16:29
3) Nagasaki 2:16:49
4) Okayama 2:17:45
5) Hyogo 2:18:40
6) Fukushima 2:18:53
7) Kanagawa 2:18:54
8) Fukuoka 2:18:54
Stage Bests
Stage - Distance - Time - Name
1 6Km 19:15 Hitomi Niiya
2 4Km 12:17 Yuriko Kobayashi New stage record
3 3Km 9:27 Ayuko Suzuki (junior high school)
4 4Km 12:43 Mari Ozaki New Stage record
5 4.1075Km 13:12 Kazue Kojima
6 4.0875Km 12:43 Ayumi Fujita New Stage record
7 4Km 12:27 Kaori Urata
8 3Km 10:08 Saki Yajima (junior high school)
9 10Km 31:32 Kayoko Fukushi
