Tokyo Paralympics-bound Kenya Karasawa broke the world record in the men's T11 vision impaired 5,000 meters, clocking 15 minutes 9.94 seconds at the East Japan corporate athletics championships on Sunday in Kumagaya, Saitama Prefecture.
Karasawa pulled away from rival Shinya Wada with 1,000 meters to go and broke the previous record of 15 minutes 11.07 seconds that had stood for 17 years.
Karasawa will be appearing in his first Paralympics this summer in Tokyo, which has exactly 100 days to go from Sunday. Wada had also previously earned a place on the Japanese team.
"I had been aiming for the world record since last year," Karasawa said. "This can put pressure on other runners [ahead of the Games]. At the big event, my race will be aimed at place not just time, so by beating Wada, I feel that I have gained the power I need."
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