Professional Ekiden

Today, I talk about professional ekiden. It is Hakone ekiden It is actually university competition. But it is very popular, so I introduce it. It is New Year event for Japanese. Maybe, people who don’t know Hakone ekiden don’t exist.

              It is held in Tokyo and Kanagawa on January 2 and 3. 19 university and selected runner who don’t take part in it team can participate it. If a certain team goal less than the tenth-ranking in last year competition, it doesn't have to take part in preliminary. And 9 teams can qualify for the preliminary. Next, ten people run in Hakone ekiden. Five people run on January 2 from Tokyo to Hakone and residual five people run on January 3 from Hakone to Tokyo. The first runners run 21.4 kilometers from Ote city to Tsurumi. If runner is a long way off the top runner, next runner feels difficult to run. So, runner must keep up with the top runner. But, strong runner sometimes runs ahead. This is one of the strategies. The second runners run 23.2 kilometers from Tsurumi to Totsuka. Aces of team often run this course. This course is up slope from last 3 kilometers. If runners don’t save stamina to here, they cannot run here well. It is point to run. The third runners run 21.5 kilometers from Totsuka to Hiratsuka. A sea breeze blows in this course. It is difficult point but other difficult points don’t exist, so this course is easy to run.  The fourth runners run 18.5 kilometers from Hiratsuka to Odawara. This course is the shortest of all courses. Because sponsors want middle distance runner to run this course. Runners can see Mt Fuji from there. The fifth runners run 23.4 kilometers from Odawara to Hakone. This course is called “Mountain Climbing” because difference in elevation is 864 meters. And they run in mountain in winter. So it is very cold. They often run with a long-sleeved shirt under uniform. People who run very fast in this course are called “god of mountain.” The sixth runners run 20.8 kilometers from Hakone to ekiden. They go back from here. This course is called “Go down a mountain.” They run faster than usual in this course because they almost run a downward slope. Last 3 kilometers in this course is flat, but they feel it is up slope. This is the most painfully. The seventh runners run 21.3 kilometers from Odawara to Hiratsuka. This course is the easiest to run. They are only careful to change temperature. The eighth runners run 21.5 kilometers from Hiratsuka to Totsuka. The latter half of this course has up slope called “up slope of Yugyoji temple.” And people are sometime dehydrated. They must mind not only their running but also their physical condition. The ninth runners run 23.2 kilometers from Totsuka to Yokohama. They are often reversed in this course. So, we can see interesting race. Last runners run 23.1 kilometers from Tsurumi to Ote city. Ranking of team decide in this course. Runners must run under extreme pressure. But I think this is interesting point. Let’s see Hakone ekiden next year.

School Ekiden

              Today, I talk about school ekiden. Concretely, they are junior high school ekiden and high school ekiden. I ran junior high school ekiden. It was very interesting. Students who run long distance aim at national athletic competition. Unfortunately, I could not take part in national athletic competition.

              First, I talk about national athletic competition of junior high school ekiden. It is held in Yamaguchi on December. How do junior high school students take part in it? They must win the championship in prefectural athletic competition. If they reach a goal in second place, they could not take part in it. In ordinary circumstances, each of runner run different course, but they run same course if they run same distance in this competition. Men’s competition is 18 kilometers. Six men run and each of them run 3 kilometers. Women’s competition is 12 kilo meters. Five women run. The first runner and last runner run 3 kilometers. The second runner, the third runner and the fourth runner run 2 kilometers. Junior high school is compulsory education. So, supervisors could not get good runner. As a result, people who don’t belong to track and field club sometime take part in ekiden competition. Women’s team whose members belong to basketball club wins the championship in national athletic competition in 2011. Some of member who run this competition run national competition of high school ekiden.

              Second, I talk about national athletic competition of high school ekiden. it is held in Kyoto on December. How do high school students take part in it? They must win the championship in prefectural athletic competition too. In the beginning, I talk about women’s competition. Five women run 21.0975 kilometers. The first runner runs 6 kilometers. It is the longest course in this competition. End of course is up slope  Foreigners cannot run this course. I think it is point worthy of note. The second runner runs 4 kilometers. This course has up and down slope. The third runner runs 3 kilometers. This course has a lot of crossings. So, runner must turn well. The fourth runner runs 3 kilometers. Most of team cannot put powerful runner in this course because this course is the shortest and easy to run. So, this course is point to win the championship. Last runner runs 5 kilometers. Runners who run this course are a big responsibility. If two runners compete, both of them may get nervous. I think person who is strong-minded will win. Next, I talk about men’s competition. Seven men run 42.195 kilometers. The first runner runs 10 kilometers. This course is the longest, so ace of team run this course. Foreigners cannot run this course. The second runner runs 3 kilometers. This course is chance to get momentum. The third runner runs 8.1075 kilometers. This course is upslope. And a head wind blows on upslope. The fourth runner runs 8.0875 kilometers. This course is a downward slope. The fifth runner runs 3 kilometers. The sixth runner runs 5 kilometers. Last runner runs 5 kilometers. This course is the same as women’s last course. Most of people who are active in this competition run Hakone ekiden.

Main Competitions of Ekiden

              I want to talk about main competitions of ekiden. They are international ekiden, New Year ekiden and wheelchair ekiden. There are other famous competitions but I choose their ekiden competitions, because they are big competitions but they aren’t known by a lot of people. We can watch international ekiden and New Year ekiden on TV. I want you to watch them at least once.

              First, I talk about international ekiden. It is held in Chiba on November 23 every year. Formal name is Hanji Aoki-Cup International Chiba-Ekiden. Three men and three women run 42.195 kilometers in this competition. First runner is man and he runs 5 kilometers. It is short for man, so running speed is important. Second runner is woman and she runs 5 kilometers. The strong wind sometimes blows on this course, so runner must pay attention to it. Third runner is man and he runs 10 kilometers. Fourth runner is woman and she runs 5 kilometers. This course is halfway point and she must turn 180 degrees. It is the point to run. Fifth runner is man and he runs 10 kilometers. This course has a lot of sloping roads, so runner must run it well. Last runner is woman and she runs 7.195 kilometers. A few countries participate in this competition. I want a lot of countries to participate in it.

              Next, I talk about New Year ekiden. It is held in Gunma on January 1 every year. Seven men run 100 kilometers in this competition. A part of course changed from 2011. I explain current information. First runner runs 12.3 kilometers. This course is flat and wide, so I think it is easy to run. Second runner runs 8.3 kilometers. Foreigners can run only this course. Third runner runs 13.6 kilometers. Fourth runner runs 22.0 kilometers. This course is the longest in this competition. And last 3 kilometers are upslope. I think that it is difficult to run and runner should save stamina till last 3 kilometers. Fifth runner runs 15.8 kilometers. This course has long upslope too. And a head wind often blows. It is called “harder than marathon.” Sixth runner runs 11.8 kilometers. Last runner runs 15.5 kilometers. This course is flat. So, if two runners compete, we can watch interesting race.

              Finally, I talk about wheelchair ekiden. It is held in Kyoto on February every year. Runners use wheelchair for running. And when they pass the baton, they touch next runner with their hand. It is said that this is difficult so they practice to touch next runner. Five people run 21.3 kilometers in this competition. First runner runs 6.4 kilometers. This is the longest course. I think pacing is the most important. Second runner runs 2.8 kilometers and third runner runs 2.4 kilometers. Fourth runner runs 5.8 kilometers. This course is upslope. It is like mountain climbing to wheelchair. Last runner runs 3.9 kilometers. To be accurate, this is not ekiden. But I explain it because I want you to know about many kind of long distance relay.

Records of Ekiden and Famous Teams

              Today, I talk about records of ekiden and famous teams. Many different kinds of records of ekiden exist. I am going to talk about record of international ekiden.

              First, I talk about what is international ekiden. It is the only international competition. It has begun since 1988. Both men’s ekiden and women’s ekiden are held till 2006. Men and women’s ekiden have been held since 2007. The first runner, the third runner and the fifth runner are men. The second runner, the fourth runner and the sixth runner are women. They run 42.195 kilometers in total. Second, I want to introduce record of international ekiden. Meet record of it is 2 hours 5 minutes 6 seconds. This record is world record too. Team of Kenya set this record in 2012. By the way, world record of marathon (42.195 kilometers) is 2 hours 3 minutes 38 seconds. Ekiden is later than marathon. I think ekiden is faster than marathon before long because marathon is one people but ekiden is six people. If ekiden is more active, record of ekiden is faster. Incidentally, Japan is second and record is 2 hours 5 minutes 16 seconds in 2012.

              Next, I talk about famous teams. Today, I introduce three teams, Waseda University, Toyo University and Asahikasei. Waseda University is one of the strongest universities. Its tasuki is dark red. They took part in the first Hakone ekiden. And they won the Hakone ekiden 13 times. Moreover, they won the Japanese university ekiden in four consecutive seasons. This is the biggest number of record of consecutive championship. And they won the big three men’s university ekiden the most times. Big three men’s ekiden are Izumo ekiden, Japanese university ekiden and Hakone ekiden. Now, a Waseda University superintendent is Yasuyuki Watanabe. He was a graduate of Waseda University and he was an ace of it. Many great runners were a graduate of Waseda University. Some of them become leader of JAAF and a movie director.

Toyo University is a regular team of Hakone ekiden. But they have not won till 2008. They won Hakone ekiden in 2009. This is the latest champion of Hakone ekiden. They are weak team since 2008, but now, it is one of the strongest universities. Why did Toyo University become strong? Because Ryuji Kashiwabada entered a university, I think. He was not great runner when he was high school student. But he grew up to be great runner in university. He was not defeated when he run a sloping road. I think that his effort had a good influence on members of Toyo University. He was a graduate of there but good descended handed down from him to them.

Asahikasei is business organization. There are many famous runners in this team. Ekiden is not main event to business organization. But ekiden is held several times a year. New Year ekiden is one of them. Asahikasei won the ekiden the most times. I expect business organization to win not only ekiden but also marathon. I want them to win marathon in the Olympic.

Regulation of Ekiden

Today, I talk about regulation of ekiden. First, I want to talk about what kind of sport ekiden is simply. Ekiden is team sports and this is track and field event like a relay race. Relay runners hold a baton in their hand and they pass the baton to next runner. On the other hand, ekiden runners sling a tasuki over their shoulder and they pass the tasuki to next runner. Tasuki is cloth in the shape of ring. Furthermore, relay runners run short distance. For example, they run 100 meters and 400 meters. But ekiden runners run long distance. When elementary students take part in ekiden, they run about 1 kilometer. But in most cases, ekiden runners run more than 3 kilometers. In case of Hakone ekiden, they run about 20 kilometers. Briefly, ekiden runners run long distance and they pass the tasuki to next runner and they run toward the finish line.

Second, I want to talk about regulation of ekiden decided by JAAF. JAAF is short for Japan Association of Athletics Federations. This association established in 1925 and it accepts Japanese record of track and field. It also decides regulation. According to its regulation, first, if runners run a crossing, they must keep left. If they can run right side, they can run a shorter way. Second, if runners can’t run, director or the persons concerned must carry them the left side of the road because they may disturb others. They run about 20 kilometers an hour. So, if they collide with people, both of people probably injure. Third, if runners can’t run, the records of their team are invalid. Ekiden is team sport. So, not carrying tasuki to goal is the same as DNF (Did Not Finish). Fourth, if runners arrived at relay station too late, they must start without waiting before runners. I think this regulation is convenience of the host organization.  The first place team sometime has a lead of 30 minutes. So, the host organization has difficulty in the management each of relay stations. And spectator may feel boring to see not changing standing. Not passing the tasuki to next runner is really humiliating. If runner starts without waiting before runner, the record of the relay exists. But they didn’t carry tasuki to goal. I think it is kind of a stop. Maybe most of people think too. So, runners make effort not to stop the race. Fifth, the persons concerned must not touch their team’s runner even if they help runner who can’t run normally. This is very difficult problem. Runners are sometime dehydrated. They want to run and pass the tasuki to next runner. But the persons concerned want not runner to run because runner may collapse. They also want runner to pass the tasuki to next runner. They are faced with a dilemma. They must get their ideas in shape.

These are part of the regulation. Other regulations are more detail. If you watch ekiden, I recommend you to look ekiden other point of view. For example, runner start without waiting before runner.

The Origin of Ekiden

              My name is Kosuke Namiki. I am in the depatment of chemistry at Tsukuba Univerese. And I belong to track and field circle.

Ekiden is long distance relay. Players run long distance with tasuki and they pass tasuki next player. Today, I want to tell about the origin of ekiden.

Ekiden was made by Tiyosaburo Takeda. He was a vice-president of Japanese physical education association. He got the idea from Tokaido 53 tugi. Tokaido 53 tugi is Japanese road and 53 inns in the Edo period. And the word “ekiden” come from “station” and “transmit”. “Station” means transfer point between a capital and country. Tokaido 53 tugi have a lot of stations. Stations have horses and inns. If people arrive at station and they want to go to next station, they ride another horse. This system was called “Tenma.” He thinks people run between stations and they pass the baton to their successor at station. And they carry “tasuki” to next runner. Tasuki is a cloth shaped a loop. People tie back their sleeves with a sash. In this way, ekiden completed. This is idea of ekiden. Well, what kind of event the first ekiden was? The first ekiden was held April 27, 1917. This event was held by Zenmaro Toki. He was head of the Yomiuri Shinbun’s social affairs department. And this event’s name was “Tokaido 53 tugi ekiden race”. This race’s start was Sanjo Ohasi Bridge in Kyoto, and goal was Shinobazunoike Pond in Tokyo. People run about 508 kilometers a team of 23 members. They started April 27 at 14:00 and they goaled April 29 at 11:34.they are running for two days. This race was competed by east Japan team and west Japan team. East Japan members were Daiichi high school, Tokyo high school and Waseda University students. West Japan members were Aichi Daiichi junior high school people who were 15 years old students, 52 years old principal and so on. From the above, this race was held between high school students or university students and junior high school students. So, East Japan won by a huge margin. On the other side, few people cheered runner the first day. But as time passed, people were interested in this race. The last runner was welcomed a lot of people. They waved their handkerchiefs and hats and so on. In that way this race succeeded.

             

            Ekiden is famous in Japan but it isn’t famous all over the world. International ekiden is held in Japan at present. But this competition isn’t famous all over the world. About 16 countries took part in this competition before but about 10 countries took part in it now. Moreover Japan enter in it three team. These are team for participating teams. In that way, ekiden doesn’t spread all over the world. A relay is famous all over the world for example, 400-meter relay race of track and field and 400-meter medley relay of swimming. Ekiden is also relay. People all over the world are sure to be interested in ekiden. So, I want to tell about what ekiden is. And I want people all over the world to be interested in ekiden.

reference materials

http://www.mars.dti.ne.jp/~takefuku/e_memo/m_back.html

http://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E9%A7%85%E4%BC%9D%E7%AB%B6%E8%B5%B0

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ekiden

http://www.inter-chibaekiden.jp/