Sports Japan - 2013/01/27

Jan. 27, Sun.

The High-school Eki-den / Team Relay Marathon
[Focus]
1. Ekiden - The History and the Allure
Ekiden is the name of a relay road race invented in Japan. It is one of the great sporting events of the Japanese winter. Various ekiden races are held across Japan but the first in 1917 took its name from the 53 stations ("eki") of the old, more than 500km road of Tokaido which connected Tokyo and Kyoto. It is remembered that the route was divided into 23 sections for the race and run by students over a period of 3 days. The Tokaido was laid out about 400 years ago for the efficient transportation of goods and these post stations were built along it, each with inns and other services for travelers. The goods were, in effect, transported in relay. The ekiden is the outgrowth of that tradition in sport.
The Hakone Ekiden between university teams started in 1920. This is a 217.9 km course in total, which doubles back on itself and is divided into 10 sections run on the 2 days of January 2 and 3. It is now the most popular ekiden of all and more than 3 million spectators line the way each year. The sport has laid down deep roots and national championships are now held in various different age groups. Broadcast commentator and former ekiden runner Tetsuhiko Kin describes the allure in terms of the spirit of sacrificing oneself for others and battling for the team as an event that is particularly moving because of how it connects people's hearts.
2. The National Senior High School Ekiden
The National Senior High School Ekiden is contested in Kyoto, the birthplace of the race, between the senior high schools which qualify through preliminaries in each of Japan's 47 prefectures. The boys race through the streets of the old capital in December over a 42.195km course that is divided into 7 sections. Last year, the focus was on the contest between the teams from the often crowned Nishiwaki Industrial Senior High School in Hyogo Prefecture, champions 8 times already, and Toyokawa Senior High School, the fastest qualifiers taking part in the national final for the very first time. Nishiwaki had a strong, all-round team and were confident of moving up in the second half of the race. Toyokawa's strategy was to seize the early lead by deploying fast runners in the first half, notably a pupil from Kenya, and then holding on to the finish. Jeremiah Karemi, that foreign student, would run the third section. Many top runners have raced at the National Senior High School Ek iden, including Samuel Kamau Wanjiru who competed 3 years in a row and went on to win gold at the Beijing Olympic men's marathon. We follow these boys battling as one for team and friends in Kyoto to win the all-Japan crown.
[Science Lens]
Ski Jumping
The ski jump is a winter sporting highlight, a dynamic sport with high skills compressed in an instant. Descending at 90 km/h, everything hangs on the 0.3 second lift-off. A super camera catches actions of that moment.
[Guest]

Jun Ikushima

Sports journalist. Long experience of covering NBA, MLB etc. as well as sport in Japan. Has also reported many times on the ekiden and written numerous books about it.

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