Miho Sugimori, who holds national records at 800m (2:00.78 for the indoor set at Yokohaa on February 22,. 2003 and 2:00.46 for the outdoor set at 2004 National Championships) and 1000m (2:41.08 in Yokohama on June 19, 2002) has added the 1500m national record to her collection. She ran 4:09.30 for the distance in Kumamoto on April 9 thus improving the national record of 4:10.39, which was set by Ikuko Tamura on June 23, 2002 in Odawara.
Started as a short sprinter, Sugimori moved up to 400m in her senior year in high school, and promptly won the national inter-high school championships at 400m. She twice won 400m in national junior championships. She continued to run 400m in college, and won the national inter-collegiate championships in her junior and senior years.
However, she soon realised that shecould not be an international caliber runner at 400m. Convinced by Kunio Omori a renowned middle distance coach in Japan, Sugimori started to concentrate on 800m after joining Kyocera track team in April of 2001. She set 1000m Asian record in June of 2002. The following winter Sugimori set 800m indoor national record and competed at the World Indoor Championships in Budapest.
Then in 2004, Sugimori set a national 800m outdoor record and competed at the Olympic Games. Sugimori, who recorded a national record at 1500m over the weekend, needs to crack at least the "B" standard at 1500m, if she is to compete at 1500m in Helsinki.