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World Youth Championships - Japanese Results Day One

by Brett Larner

The Japanese team at the IAAF World Youth Championships in Lille, France by and large performed well on the first day of competition, with 15 of the 21 athletes competing in heats and qualification rounds advancing to the next stage.  Particularly strong were hurdler Shota Madokoro, who won his heat of the boys' 400 mH in a PB of 53.46 and sprinters Anna Doi, Kazuma Oseto and Kazuma Tsukamoto, all of whom won their 100 m heats.  Hurdlers Takahiro Matsumoto and Ikumi Iida also clocked new PBs to advance in their events.

In the only final of the day to feature Japanese athletes, top high school runners Katsuki Suga and Tomoka Kimura turned in strong performances but were unable to break into the medals.  Kimura dictated the early pace, leading the race through a quick 2:58.83 first kilometer before team tactics led to a slow 3:07 second km.  In the blazing 2:51 final kilometer both Japanese runners lost touch as top 3 Gotytom Gebrslase (Ethiopia), Ziporah Wanjiru Kingori (Kenya) and Caroline Chepkoech Kipkirui (Kenya) all broke 9 minutes, Gotytom's world-leading 8:56.36 almost exactly on Kimura's opening pace.  Suga pushed through to a new PB of 9:05.62 for 6th with Kimura paying for her early gamble as she ended up 7th in 9:11.36, the only runner in the top 12 not to run a PB.

2011 World Youth Championships Day One Japanese Results
Lille, France, July 6, 2011
click here for complete results

Girls' 3000 m Final
1. Gotytom Gebreslase (Ethiopia) - 8:56.36 - PB
2. Ziporah Wanjiru Kingori (Kenya) - 8:56.82 - PB
3. Caroline Chepkoech Kipkirui (Kenya) - 8:58.63 - PB
4. Alena Kudashkina (Russia) - 9:01.51 - PB
5. Alemitu Heroye (Ethiopia) - 9:04.53 - PB
6. Katsuki Suga (Japan) - 9:05.62 - PB
7. Tomoka Kimura (Japan) - 9:11.36
8. Anca Maria Bunea (Romania) - 9:25.11 - PB
9. Luula Berhane Kebedom (Eritrea) - 9:32.17 - PB
10. Claudia Estevez (Spain) - 9:34.70 - PB

Boys' 2000 mSC Heats
Ryo Uchimura (12th, Heat 2) - 6:10.45

Girls' 1500 m Heats
Yui Fukuda (4th, Heat 2) - 4:21.76 (Q)
Shiho Takeda (6th, Heat 1) - 4:25.89 (q)

Boys' 800 m Heats
Jun Mitake (3rd, Heat 6) - 1:52.69 (Q)

Girls' 400 m Heats
Ayaka Nagura (4th, Heat 4) - 57.01

Boys' 400 m Heats
Takuya Fukunaga (2nd, Heat 6) - 47.24 (Q)
Shotaro Aikyo (2nd, Heat 1) - 47.74 (Q)

Girls' 400 mH Heats
Aya Takizawa (2nd, Heat 5) - 59.86 (Q)
Minori Tanaka (4th, Heat 3) - 1:00.18 (Q)

Boys' 400 mH Heats
Takahiro Matsumoto (2nd, Heat 5) - 53.42 - PB (Q)
Shota Madokoro (1st, Heat 4) - 53.46 - PB (Q)

Girls' 100 m Heats
Anna Doi (1st, Heat 1) - 11.83 (Q)
Yumi Nobayashi (3rd, Heat 8) - 12.11 (q)

Boys' 100 m Heats
Kazuma Oseto (1st, Heat 12) - 10.65 (Q)
Kazuya Tsukamoto (1st, Heat 3) - 10.79 (Q)

Girls' 100 mH Heats
Ikumi Iida (4th, Heat 1) - 14.16 - PB (Q)
Rina Hagita (5th, Heat 3) - 14.26 (q)

Girls' Javelin Throw Qualification
Ai Yamauchi (6th, Group B) - 47.93 (q)
Hiroko Takigawa (8th, Group A) - 46.36

Boys' Long Jump Qualification
Asahi Iida (13th, Group B) - 6.95 m
Ikki Fukunaga (12th, Group A) - 6.72 m

(c) 2011 Brett Larner
all rights reserved

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