Yoshihide Kiryu emerged victorious in a clash of Japan's top sprinters in his first race at the venue for the Tokyo Olympics, while Nozomi Tanaka rewrote the national record in the women's 1,500 meters that had stood for 14 years on Sunday at the Seiko Golden Grand Prix.
Kiryu won the men's 100 meters with a time of 10.14 seconds, run into a 0.2 mps headwind, finishing .02 ahead of Aska Cambridge in second.
Yuki Koike, along with Kiryu and Abdul Hakim Sani Brown the only Japanese to have ever broken 10 seconds in the 100, lagged behind in eighth place in 10.53. Ryota Yamagata, a member of the 4x100 relay team that won the silver medal at the Rio Olympics and included Kiryu and Cambridge, failed to make the final.
Tanaka provided the highlight of the day when she easily pulled away from the field and won in 4 minutes 5.27 seconds, shattering the previous record of 4:07.86 set by Yuriko Kobayashi in Yokohama in 2006.
In other events, Genki Dean won the men's javelin throw with a toss of 84.05 meters.
The Seiko meet was the first athletics competition held in the new National Stadium in Tokyo. Though it was held without spectators, Kiryu felt the energy of the Olympic venue.
Kiryu changed his uniform from the white one he wore in his preliminary heat to a burning red one for the final.
Kiryu won the race with heated battles with Cambridge as his rival, and expressed his enthusiasm about the Tokyo Olympics to be held in summer next year.
"I made it fun by imagining the exciting atmosphere when [the stadium] is filled with spectators," Kiryu said following his close victory over rival Cambridge.
Kiryu, who had issues with the latter stage of his race, showed his progress by taking the lead in the middle portion and holding off Cambridge, who is known for having a strong finish.
His elimination in the semifinals at last year's world championships has stuck in his mind, when "I got passed in the last few steps." This season, he has worked on "stabilizing my speed from the middle of the race," and kept that image on Sunday.
While Kiryu attracted attention when he became the first Japanese in history to break the 10-second barrier, he also gained a reputation as being weak in competition by falling apart in meets against top sprinters.
But he has recently relegated that image to the past. Last season, Kiryu won the gold medal at the Asian Championships, and on Sunday, maintained his stride in going down to the wire with Cambridge.
"I'm glad I could hold on for the win," Kiryu said repeatedly with a satisfied look.
Kiryu clearly views the postponement of the Tokyo Olympics by a year as "100% positive for me. I'm getting stronger mentally and physically. I have acquired the ability to concentrate fully on each race."
While the effects of the new coronavirus have put a crimp in his training, the 24-year-old sprinter continues to progress toward achieving his dream of making the Olympic final.
New middle-distance hope
By cutting nearly three seconds off the old national record, Tanaka replaced in the record book a woman whom she has long admired -- and shares a hometown of Ono, Hyogo Prefecture.
"I was so concentrated that I have no memory of the race itself," a joyful Tanaka said. "I want to convey my happy feelings to Yuriko-san."
There was unforeseen trouble behind the great accomplishment. The pair of shoes which she had planned to wear in the race were found in a pre-race measurement to have a sole thickness exceeding the limit set by World Athletics in late July.
Her father and coach, Katsutoshi, hurriedly rushed to their lodgings next to the stadium to pick up another pair of spikes. Tanaka remained undaunted, saying, "I turned defiant and ran without thinking about anything."
From the gun, she ran at a high pace at the front of the pack. On the last lap, Tanaka shifted gears and pulled away from reigning Japan champion Ran Urabe.
Tanaka now holds two national records, adding to the one she set in the rarely run 3,000 in July, when she ran in five races in different venues over a two-week span. The 20-year-old hopeful has built up her physical and mental toughness to go with her inherent speed.
"I want to work hard while having fun racing, so that I can have a good performance when the Olympics is held here next year," Tanaka said.
With a year to go, Tanaka's potential for growth is immeasurable.
Read more from The Japan News at https://japannews.yomiuri.co.jp/
