National Corporate Track and Field Championships

National Corporate Track and Field Championships - Day One Results

by Brett Larner

The 2009 National Jitsugyodan Track and Field Championships got underway Sept. 25 in Okayama with the men's and women's 10000 m, the men divided into three heats by time and the women into two. Photo finishes were the order of the day.

Former Hakone Ekiden "God of the Mountain" 5th stage legend Masato Imai (Team Toyota Kyushu) kicked off the night with a 0.32 second win over Shinji Suzuki (Team Aisan Kogyo) in Heat One of the men's 10000 m, the slowest of the three. Aya Nagata (Team Toyota Jidoshoki) followed suit in the women's 10000 m Heat One, beating teammate Akane Wakita by just 0.02 seconds. Ryosuke Fukuyama (Team JAL Ground Service) widened the margin of victory in the men's Heat Two, winning over Kenichi Kita (Team Kyudenko) by a luxurious 0.83 seconds.

In the women's Heat Two, the only race of the night with a margin of victory greater than one second, Kenyan Philes Ongori (Team Hokuren) had a predictable win in one of her last tuneups before next month's World Half Marathon, clocking a gentle 32:50.30. The surprise came in 2nd, where the aggressive young Ryoko Kizaki (Team Daihatsu) outkicked Ongori's Kenyan national teammate Danielle Filomena Cheyech (Team Uniqlo) and 3000 m, 5000 m and half marathon national record holder Kayoko Fukushi (Team Wacoal). Less than three seconds separated the top four, with 5th placer Yumi Hirata (Team Shiseido) a fraction of a second behind the recently-ailing Fukushi.

Fresh from another round of bad press in the Kenyan media, Gideon Ngatuny (Team Nissin Shokuhin) returned the night to photo-finish territory with a 0.03 second win over arch-rival Josephat Ndambiri (Team Komori Corp.), both runners breaking 27:30. Less than a second behind Yacob Jarso (Team Honda) and John Thuo (Team Toyota) were even closer, both runners clocking 27:30.08, a PB for each, and officially declared tied for 3rd. Ngatuny's teammate Satoru Kitamura (Team Nissin Shokuhin) took the top Japanese spot, 9th overall in a distant 28:29.11.

2009 National Jitsugyodan Track and Field Championships - Top Results
click event headers for complete results

Men's 10000 m Heat Three
1. Gideon Ngatuny (Team Nissin Shokuhin) - 27:29.08
2. Josephat Ndambiri (Team Komori Corp.) - 27:29.11
3. Yacob Jarso (Team Honda) - 27:30.08 - PB
3. John Thuo (Team Toyota) - 27:30.08 - PB
5. Nicholas Makau (Team JAL Ground Service) - 28:03.75
6. James Mwangi (Team NTN) - 28:05.52
7. Silas Jui (Team Hitachi Cable) - 28:07.42
8. Samuel Ngungu (Team Aichi Seiko) - 28:08.40
9. Satoru Kitamura (Team Nissin Shokuhin) - 28:29.11
10. Takeshi Hamano (Team Toyota) - 28:36.62

Men's 10000 m Heat Two
1. Ryosuke Fukuyama (Team JAL Ground Service) - 29:01.06
2. Kenichi Kita (Team Kyudenko) - 29:01.89
3. Yuki Abe (Team Mitsubishi Juko Nagasaki) - 29:02.51
4. Noritaka Fujiyama (Team Sumco Techxiv) - 29:04.45
5. Kazuki Ikenaga (Team Konica Minolta) - 29:04.62

Men's 10000 m Heat One
1. Masato Imai (Team Toyota Kyushu) - 29:24.36
2. Shinji Suzuki (Team Aisan Kogyo) - 29:24.68
3. Tomohiro Shiiya (Team Tokyo Denryoku) - 29:33.26

Women's 10000 m Heat Two
1. Philes Ongori (Team Hokuren) - 32:50.30
2. Ryoko Kizaki (Team Daihatsu) - 32:51.51
3. Danielle Filomena Cheyech (Team Uniqlo) - 32:52.07
4. Kayoko Fukushi (Team Wacoal) - 32:53.26
5. Yumi Hirata (Team Shiseido) - 32:53.95
6. Megumi Seike (Team Sysmex) - 32:55.98
7. Yurika Nakamura (Team Tenmaya) - 32:57.34
8. Hiroko Miyauchi (Team Kyocera) - 32:58.65
9. Hiromi Ominami (Team Toyota Shatai) - 33:05.11
10. Yoko Miyauchi (Team Kyocera) - 33:06.78

Women's 10000 m Heat One
1. Aya Nagata (Team Toyota Jidoshoki) - 33:03.47
2. Akane Wakita (Team Toyota Jidoshoki) - 33:03.49
3. Yuka Takashima (Team Denso) - 33:10.11
4. Yumi Sato (Team Shiseido) - 33:21.94
5. Rina Nomura (Team Uniqlo) - 33:31.04

(c) 2009 Brett Larner
all rights reserved

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