2022 Outdoors

[LuckySpikes]

Nozomi Tanaka set a 1.3s PB in finishing 2nd in the 5000 today at the Japanese Corporate Championships with 14:58.60. Margaret Akidor (KEN) won in 14:57.81.

Judging by Nozomi's 62/63s last lap she can go faster still. She's shown signs this late summer of spreading her wings by racing more abroad, so hopefully she decides to get in a DL 5000 next year. If so, Ririka Hironaka's NR of 14:52.87 will be in danger (if mega-talent 19yo Seira Fuwa doesn't get there first!). Fuwa is on the comeback trail after getting an achilles injury in February - 2 weeks ago she won her first serious race since then, a 32:55 10,000.

Meanwhile, Kipchoge is through halfway in Berlin in 59:51 !!! No, that's not a typo!!

[Ursus]

2.01.09 WR for Kipchoge.

Blimey……

[LuckySpikes]

World Record! 2:01:09 for Kipchoge taking exactly 30s off his record. He won the race by almost 5 minutes!

There were many more good times in the Women's race:

1 Tigist Assefa 2:15:37 (68:13 / 67:24 splits) - Just the third woman to run sub-2:16 (this was her second marathon). She's also the owner of a sub-2 800m PB from 2014 !
2 Rosemary Wanjiru 2:18:00 - The second fastest debut ever, I think
...
6 Keira D'Amato 2:21:48 - on sub-2:19 NR pace at halfway but faded
7 Rika Kaseda (JPN) 2:21:55 - a 6+ minute PB! Now # 10 Japanese A-T
8 Ayuko Suzuku (JPN) 2:22:02 - also a 6+ minute PB!
9 Sayaka Sato (JPN) 2:22:13 - a 1+ minute PB
...
12 Natasha Wodak (CAN) 2:23:12 - a 3 min PB at 40 years old!
...
15 Lisa Weightman (AUS) 2:24:00 - a 1 min PB for the 43yo

[marilyn1]

i dont think the next competitive global marathon will have a pacer, very easy straight course in perfect conditions, so the the athletes who ran Berlin so well may be rather less excellent next August in Budapest.

[marilyn1]

Some may have noticed an outstanding performance in the Chicago Marathon by Chepengetich just 13 secs outside the the world record.I believe she recorded 65.44 at halfway.Them shoes are showing great potential for a 2.13 in the next year or so

[Occasional Hope]

There have been some astonishingly fast marathons this year.

[MR_ME]

It's what's expected with the shoe technology. 2:17 is the new 2:20 for female marathons runners. I expect the world records, both male and female, to change hands many times over the next few years until someone does something exceptional that is hard to beat. Maybe 2:12 for the women's record.

[trickstat]

2:12 is just over 5 minute miling. I don't think it was that long ago that our minds would have been blown by a woman running 10 miles at that pace.

One of the things that has been said about the latest generation of shoes is that they allow runners to recover from hard sessions and races more quickly. I was impressed that Philip Sesemann ran the 3rd fastest leg in the National 6 stage Road Relay on Saturday, less than a week after running 2:12 in London. I think previously you wouldn't have seen someone attempt to race at that level until 2 or 3 weeks after a marathon.

[Grassmarket]

Early news for 2023 - all four Divisions of the European Team Championships will be held in Krakow as part of the general European Games 21 June - 3 July. Not sure of the dates yet, but presumably this means 8 days of competitions with 2 days' competition for each division.

[Grassmarket]

World Relays in China for 2023 postponed to 2025.

https://worldathletics.org/news/press-releases/world-athletics-relays-guangzhou-23-postponed-2025

[Occasional Hope]

What a surprise.

[LuckySpikes]

At the JTBC Seoul Marathon (as distinct from the other Seoul Marathon in March) ...

In his second marathon Amedework Walelegn, the 2019 bronze medalist in the World Half Marathon, won in 2:07:01, taking 47s off his PB.

There was no international field in the Women's race but Doyeon Kim won in 2:27:31, her fastest marathon since her national record 2:25:41 in 2019.

[LuckySpikes]

Sadly, Selina Büchel has retired from athletics citing long COVID (she was first infected in April 2021).

She was twice the European Indoor 800m Champion in 2015 & 2017 and twice finished Top 6 at the World Indoors. She had an outdoor PB of 1:57.95.

https://runningmagazine.ca/sections/runs-races/two-time-european-800m-champion-retires-from-running-citing-long-covid/

[Aussiestatman]

I have seen a lot of people guess Gidey's debut time in Valencia this Sunday. If the women and men start together, I say Gidey will be between the current PB's of Derek Hawkins and Alex Milne. It's just a question of which end of that gap will she be the nearest to?

[LuckySpikes]

I have seen a lot of people guess Gidey's debut time in Valencia this Sunday. If the women and men start together, I say Gidey will be between the current PB's of Derek Hawkins and Alex Milne. It's just a question of which end of that gap will she be the nearest to?

Who?? I had to look him up on WA - for anyone else wondering his PB is 2:17:53.

I'll say Gidey runs 2:14:50. Marathons are hard to absolutely nail first time! (Yes, the men & women start together).

[LuckySpikes]

In Valencia Letesenbet Gidey ran the fastest marathon debut ever but was beaten by a woman who had a 2:20:48 PB beforehand! There were National Records galore in the Women's race.

1 Amane Beriso (ETH) 2:14:58 NR (# 3 A-T)
2 Gidey 2:16:49
3 Sheila Chepkirui 2:17:29 (debut)
4 Tadu Teshome (ETH) 2:17:36 PB (also known as Tadu Nare if you watch the streams of the Women's Grand Prix 10k series in South Africa)
...
8 Etagegne Woldu (ERI) 2:20:03 NR
10 Majida Maayouf (MAR) 2:21:01 NR
12 Sinead Diver (AUS) 2:21:34 NR (Over 45 WR)
13 Bojana Bjeljac (CRO) 2:23:39 NR
14 Giovanna Epis (ITA) 2:23:54 PB (just 10s outside Straneo's NR)
18 Natasha Cockram 2:26:14 (Welsh record ! # 6 UK A-T)
19 Marta Galimany (ESP) 2:26:22 NR

Men's race
1 Kelvin Kiptum 2:01:53 (# 3 A-T; fastest debut ever; 60:15 second half !)
2 Gabriel Geay (TAN) 2:03:00 NR (improving own NR by 1:55)
3 Alexander Mutiso (KEN) 2:03:29 (debut for the 57:59 HM athlete)
4 Tamirat Tola 2:03:40
Ten Men sub-2:06
...
13 Nicolas Navarro (FRA) 2:07:01 PB

In Fukuoka Rob de Castella's Aussie NR has finally been broken - Brett Robinson running 2:07:31.

[Aussiestatman]

My thoughts all along on the Gidey debut was to just see how exhausted Gidey was after her WR half. It was always going to be a process to master this classic distance, IMO

[Aussiestatman]

and unless Etagegne has changed countries, no NR, Ethiopian

[LuckySpikes]

At this morning's Distance Challenge in Kyoto (Conti Tour Challenger meeting) the last 2 laps of the Men's 5000 'A' race were pretty wild - watch it at https://youtu.be/Qjf7LqIKknU?t=12767 (link timestamped to start with 2 laps to go).

In the preceding Women's 5000 'A' race 19yo Judy Jepngetich won in 14:50.20 (a 6s PB). Tanaka 5th in 15:06 & Hironaka 6th in 15:17. From the early pace - 2:57 & 3:00 - it seems like it was set up as a Japanese record attempt (Hironaka's 14:52.84) but neither of them had much left in the closing stages.

The Women's 10,000 'A' race field was hit by several big-name withdrawals but was still quite deep:
1 Rino Goshima 31.22.38 (12s outside her PB; halfway in 15:39)
2 Momoka Kawaguchi 31:57.81 PB (a 14s PB)
3 Wakana Itsuki 31:58.59 PB (I'm really chuffed for Itsuki dipping under 32 for the first time - previous PB 32:04 - she's a real trooper)
4 Yuka Takashima 31:59.60 (34yo; 2015 WCh & 2016 Rio representative with a 31:33 PB)
5 Hina Yanagitani 32:01.25 PB (a 30s PB for this 22yo)
6 Naruha Sato 32:03.48 (11s outside her PB)

In the 'B' race Natsuki Sekiya (31:50 PB) produced a gutsy effort to win in 32:51.14, her fastest time for 3 years and an encouraging sign that she can get her career back on track. At 25yo she has time on her side.

Keita Yoshida (24yo) won the Men's 10,000 from a (by Japanese standards) very sparse field of 8 athletes, running an 11s PB in 28:13:34 (halfway in 14:00).

[LuckySpikes]

At the 50th edition of the big Corrida de Houilles 10km in France this afternoon ...

Men's
1 Telahun Bekele 27:29 - If I'd known he was competing I would have included him in my LSL teaser notes (on Facebook he was listed instead as Haile Bekele, a name I didn't recognise)
2 Vincent Kibet 27:30
3 Dominic Lobalu (SSD) 27:32
...
6 Jonas Glans (SWE) 27:57 - Swedish NR; Formerly known as Jonas Leandersson (I've no idea why he switched names)
7 Nils Voigt (GER) 28:03
8 Morhad Amdouni 28:06
9 Efrem Gidey (IRL) 28:13
...
19 Phil Sesemann 28:51

Women's
1 Mercy Cherono 30:55
2 Mestawat Truneh 31:45
3 Sara Benfares (FRA) 31:45 - A French U23 record, taking down Manon Trapp's 32:07. Trapp was due to race here as were Alina Reh & Hanna Klein but probably they haven't recovered from Euro Cross yet
4 Steph Twell 32:14 - Encouraging for her after a rough couple of years. Her best performance since a 68:55 Half Marathon in Jan 2020 (and she's raced over 20 times this year)
...
9 Elle Twentyman (GBR) 33:28
10 Hannah Viner (GBR) 33:30