At 10:05 a.m. local time on May 8, the Sendai International Half Marathon 2022 Challenge will kick off in Sendai City, Japan, which is also the return of the event after a gap of 3 years, due to the impact of the new crown epidemic and other factors, the scale of the race was reduced to about 4,000 people, while only the half horse group and the wheelchair half horse group were raced.
The most concerned about this race is undoubtedly the well-known athlete Da qiangjie, which is his debut after his comeback, but daqi jie does not participate as an elite runner or an ordinary runner this time, but as a special guest runner of the event.
At the 2021 Tokyo Marathon, Daisuke said before the start of the race that he would retire after August 8, and the Tokyo Olympics would be the last run of his marathon career. As soon as this news came out, it triggered the regret and regret of many runners, but everyone also respected and blessed his choice, and hoped that he would have a more wonderful life in the future.
A month later, on September 14, 2021, Daisuke held an open online meeting with the mayor of Sendai City, and the two discussed topics such as the importance of physical education. During the period, when the mayor of Sendai invited Daisuke to participate in the Sendai International Half Marathon, Daisuke gladly agreed and said, "I hope to be a special invitee." However, unfortunately, in 2021, the event was cancelled due to the epidemic, and the "Sendai Half Horse Covenant" of Dajie was not realized.
Until this year, at the beginning of the year, Daisuke showed the idea of returning to the field and intended to compete in the 2024 Paris Olympic Games, and this year's Sendai International Half Horse happened to be his first half horse after his comeback.
For this game, Dajie said in a message to the organizing committee before the game:
"I was the one who participated in the Sendai International Half Marathon as a special guest. Sendai is a city with a rich natural environment. Professional sports teams such as baseball, soccer, and basketball are also active, giving the impression that sports are very popular in cities. I am very happy to be able to participate in the competition that has been held in Sendai for more than 30 years. Needless to say, marathons are a simple sport. In the marathon races participated by the citizens, they can pursue speed, rush to the finish line at their own pace, and enjoy the moment of facing themselves. Running is about taking yourself as the protagonist and enjoying the important moments of life. Moreover, once you step out of a familiar place, you will have different expressions and feelings than usual. I'm looking forward to the first time I run the streets of Sendai, and what kind of scenery I see in my eyes. I'm also looking forward to enjoying this special time with everyone. Let's enjoy the day of May 8th! ”
Sendai International Half Marathon
Sendai International Half Marathon is an international marathon held by Sendai City in Japan since 1991, and is also a model for Japan's "citizen participation marathon". The event has 2 km, 5 km and half horse tracks, and about 10,000 people sign up to participate every year. Due to the beautiful natural scenery of Sendai City in all seasons, the event is well-served, and every year, once the number of places in the event is released, it will be immediately robbed. The relevant operators of the organizing committee had previously considered changing the Sendai International Half Horse to a Full Horse Race, but in the end this proposal was rejected, and they hoped to make the Sendai International Half Horse "the best half horse race in Japan".
Track information
Seeded player
In the previously announced roster, Yuki Kawauchi, Yuta Shiraku, Daichi Kanno, Hotan Maeda, and Tomoki Suzuki competed as special invitees. In addition, there are invited players from the industrial group such as Kenta Murayama, Hoshigatake, Yasuhei Nioka, Alexander Mutiso, Reiko Iwaide, Wakamamerai, and Matsushita.
However, recently, the organizing committee of the tournament announced that 37 players, including Yuki Kawauchi, Yuta Shiraku, Hoshigaku, and Kumonrai, were withdrawn from the competition for various reasons. The battle for the title also fell to other seeded players.
Alexander Mutiso, a Kenyan runner who won the 19th Sendai International Half Marathon, set the fourth best time in world history with a time of 57 minutes and 59 seconds at the 2020 Valencia Half Marathon.
Kanno Daichi, who has previously been active as a "mountain god" in Hakone Ekiden, won the gold medal at the 2019 Asian Marathon Championships, and the personal best time of the half horse was 1 hour 01 minutes and 04 seconds in 2017. He has now qualified for the 2024 Paris Olympic Marathon Grand Prix (MGC).
Kenta Murayama, from Sendai City, finished 3rd at the 19th Sendai International Halfway Race and hopes to qualify for the Paris Olympics by achieving good results in this competition. The half-horse personal best was 1 hour and 50 seconds.
Hotan Maeda, who represented Japan at the Tokyo Olympic Marathon last year, will compete in the women's race. She is the Japanese women's 30 km record holder. She is looking forward to competing with Reiya Iwate, Natsuki Matsushita, Kaori Morita and others who already have the right to participate in mgc at the 2022 Paris Olympics.
For Dajie, at present, he has not yet revealed what expectations he has for the results of this game, and perhaps he will focus on his feelings and state of returning to the field. Dajie set his comeback all-horse first game from this autumn winter to next spring, looking forward to his return to the field in the best condition and continuing to write his own legend.