Tokyo, Japan - For the second week in a row, a Tanzanian runner has won a major Japanese marathon. Today, Zebedayo Bayo, who was third in 1998 New York City Marathon (2:08:51), won the 2003 Tokyo International Marathon in 2:09:07. Only last week in Oita, Samson Ramadhani of Tanzania won the Beppu-Oita Mainichi marathon in 2:09:24.

"I am in great shape. I trained for three months in Arusha (Tanzania) along with Samson Ramadhani who won the Beppu-Oita Marathon," Bayo told Tatsuo Terada during the pre-race press conference.

The pre-race favourite had been Japan’s Shigeru Aburaya, "he is in the best marathon shape of his life. Last summer he covered over 1200Km in a month," said his coach Yasushi Sakaguchi.

However, when Bayo surged after 40Km, Aburaya was unable to keep up and finished second in 2:09:30, but was automatically selected for the World Championships marathon team for Paris, having satisfied the requirement set by Japan AAF (the first Japanese in the race with the finishing time under 2:10).

Finishing third in 2:10:11 was Aburaya's teammate Noriaki Igarashi, nick named "Arashi" the storm. He must wait after the final qualifying race, the Lake Biwa Marathon in March to see if he will run in Paris.   

The race started in unseasonably warm conditions of 13C and 48% humidity, and perhaps because of it, it started slow. The 10Km split was a quite modest 30:22. 

The pace setters Abner Chipu of South Africa and Tobias Hiskia of Namibia were supposed to keep the tempo to 3 minutes per Km, but the half marathon split was only 1:04:15, one minute behind the schedule.

Even after the turn around point, the pace stayed moderate, and because of it, all the main contenders were still together at 30Km. Chipu was leading after Hiskia was gone after 13Km, but Naoki Mishiro a former double World University Games medallist was always near the front, but Aburaya kept on missing his own drink bottle at the aid stations.

The first main casualty of the race was Brazil’s former holder of the World’s best time (2:06:05), Ronald Da Costa of Brazil who before the race had commented that, "I have trained for three months in the high altitude in Colombia. During this time including Christmas holidays, I was away from my family. I hope to run 2:08 or 2:09." However, despite the slow pace, he fell off the lead pack just before 30Km.

The real racing finally started at 30Km, when Aburaya who was fifth in Edmonton surged immediately after the aid station. His teammate at Chugoku Electric Power, Noriaki Igarashi immediately covered Aburaya's move. So did Laban Kagika, a Kenyan who lives in Japan and runs for JFE (Japan Future Engineering).

These three ran in front until Zebedayo Bayo joined them three kilometres later. Then it was Bayo who took the initiative after 35Km, which led to the dropping of Igarashi and Kagika in succession.

So between 36km and 39km over the hill which gains 30m of elevation over 3Km, the race turned into a duel between Aburaya and Bayo.

Historically, the race winner has often surged over the steepest part of the course, and Bayo did exactly that and opened the daylight between him and Aburaya. Still Aburaya stayed within the striking distance throughout the length of the hill.

However, at the top, Bayo surged again and had opened a decisive gap by 41Km, eventually winning in 2:09:07, improving on his fourth place finish of two years ago. 

For Aburaya who finished second, 23 seconds behind, it was his best placing in his four marathon starts; his previous best being third place finish at Lake Biwa marathon (2:07:52).

With his teammate Tsuyoshi Ogata automatically making the World Championships marathon team in December's Fukuoka marathon, Aburaya becomes the second Chugoku Electric Power runner to make the Worlds marathon team.

The third place finisher Igarashi also still has a chance to make the team, as the second Japanese finisher in Fukuoka marathon only ran 2:12:14. Hence all depends on the results of the Lake Biwa Marathon at the beginning of March, where Atsushi Sato, another Chugoku Electric Power track team runner will be competing.

In his third marathon, Naoki Mishiro finished fourth in a personal best of 2:10:33. Mishiro who finished 22nd at 10,000m in Edmonton, must also wait for results in Lake Biwa, to see if he can return to the World Championships, this time at the marathon.

Ken Nakamura for the IAAF 

Results:  (JPN unless otherwise noted) 
1)    Zebedayo Bayo  (TAN)   2:09:07
2)    Shigeru Aburaya        2:09:30
3)    Noriaki Igarashi               2:10:11
4)    Naoki Mishiro           2:10:33
5)    Laban Kagika (KEN)           2:10:43  
6) Ambesse Tolossa (ETH)  2:12:32
7) Gert Thys (RSA)           2:12:51
8) Yoshiteru Morishita        2:12:54
9) Rod De Highden (AUS)    2:14:40
10) Michitane Noda            2:15:55 

Splits  (Unofficial)
5Km     14:56
10Km    30:22           (15:26)
15Km    45:40   (15:18)
20Km    1:00:58 (15:18)
Half    1:04:15
25Km    1:16:29         (15:32)
30Km    1:32:16         (15:47)
35Km    1:47:22 (15:06)
40Km    2:02:44         (15:22) 
Finish  2:09:07 (6:23)