Ritsumeikan University won the 24th All JPN Collegiate Women’s Ekiden Championships, which were held over the six-stage 38.6Km course in Sendai on Sunday 29 October.
Twenty six teams took part in the 24th edition of the collegiate women’s ekiden. It was the third win for Ritsumeikan, having won in 2003 and 2004. Ritsumeikan covered the 38.6Km course in 2:07:21, while the defending champions and the pre-race favourites Meijyo University finished second in 2:08:15.
Ritsumeikan was in eighth place 20 seconds behind the leader after the 6Km first stage, but thanks to brilliant run by Kazue Kojima, they took over the lead 5.4Km into the second stage. Though Ritsumeikan lost the lead to Buddhist University in the third stage, they re-took command again in the fifth stage.
The defending champions Meijyo University were in 13th place after the 6Km first stage. They steadily moved up during the race and moved into the second place 3.5Km into the 8Km sixth and the final stage. Yet that was the closest they ever got to Ritsumeikan who extended their lead in the last half of the final stage, and won comfortably. Four of their sixth runners recorded the stage best.
Ken Nakamura for the IAAF
Results:
1) Ritsumeikan University 2:07:21
2) Meijyo University 2:08:15
3) Buddhist University 2:08:42
4) Jyosai Univeristy 2:09:15
Best Stages
1 6Km 19:37 Mary Wangari Ritsumeikan University
2 6.6Km 21:20 Kazue Kojima Ritsumeikan University
3 9.1Km 29:59 Ryoko Kizaki Buddhist University
4 4.9Km 15:36 Ikumi Yaguchi Ritsumeikan University
5 4Km 13:08 Mayu Goto Ritsumeikan University
6 8Km 26:13 Noriko Higuchi Ritsumeikan University