<102nd Hakone Ekiden> Soka University Ekiden Team places 8th in the first leg!
On Friday, January 2nd, the 102nd Hakone Ekiden (Tokyo-Hakone Round-Trip College Ekiden Race) was held over the first five sections (107.5 km, from Otemachi, Tokyo to Hakone-machi, Kanagawa). The Soka University Ekiden Club, participating for the ninth time in seven consecutive years, finished the first leg in eighth place with a time of 5 hours, 24 minutes and 2 seconds.
Taking on the challenge of the big stage for the first time, Haruka Kuroki (4th year) ran the first section, tenaciously clinging to the leading group and passing the sash to Steven Mucini (3rd year) for the second section, finishing 14th, just 1 minute 15 seconds behind the leader. Mucini was entrusted with the "flower section 2," which brings together the top runners from each school, and with a strong run from the start, he steadily climbed the ranks, finishing 5th in his section and pushing the team up to 7th, before handing the sash to Takumi Oribashi (3rd year) for the third section. Now forced to chase after those in front, Oribashi continued to chase them hard in an attempt to improve his position, and entered the Hiratsuka relay station in 9th place in his section and 7th place on the team.
In the tough race against a field packed with talented athletes from each school, Shoki Yamaguchi (2nd year) ran the 4th section, steadily carrying the sash with a steady run, and passed the sash to Yuma Nozawa (4th year) in the 5th section, finishing 15th in his section and 8th in the team rankings. Taking on the challenge of mountain climbing for the first time since his first year, Nozawa, a 4th year student, ran powerfully up the steep slopes of Hakone, carrying a sash filled with the hopes of his teammates. He showed a powerful run, finishing 6th in his section, and the team crossed the finish line in 8th place on the outbound leg.
Looking back on the first leg, coach Enoki Kazutaka said, "Thank you for your warm support from early in the morning. We started the first leg with the goal of finishing in the top three, but the race unfolded at a faster pace than we expected. There are some strong runners waiting for us on the return leg, so we'd like to catch up. First, we'll get fired up in sections 6 and 7 to get into catch-up mode, and I'm looking forward to seeing them run in sections 8 through 10 to push up our rankings. We look forward to your continued support tomorrow."
The return leg begins tomorrow, Saturday, January 3rd, at 8:00 AM, and the team will start 5 minutes and 54 seconds behind the leader, Aoyama Gakuin University. Please see X below for the results of the first leg and comments from the runners. X is also running a "Like & Repost Support Campaign." We appreciate your continued support tomorrow.
