Skip to main content

More Details Released on Marathon National Record Bonus Plan as Project Sponsors Sought

http://www.sponichi.co.jp/sports/news/2015/03/30/kiji/K20150330010082020.html

translated by Brett Larner

The Japan Industrial Track and Field Association (JITA) national corporate federation held a press conference on Mar. 30 in Tokyo to announce the establishment of its "Project Exceed" marathon development project.  Targeting the ultimate goal of marathon medals at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, new Japanese marathon national record bonus and corporate league Japanese marathon national record attempt incentive policies were revealed at the press conference.  With the Japan Business Federation coming on board in a sponsorship capacity, the JITA is looking widely to recruit a broad spectrum of sponsors.  Project Exceed is expected to get off the ground with as much of the necessary funding as possible in place following the JITA's general assembly in July and to run until the end of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.

A 100 million yen bonus [~$1 million USD at normal exchange rates] will be paid to any Japanese citizen athlete whose marathon time is certified as a new Japanese national record regardless of whether or not the athlete is registered as a corporate league runner, with the athlete's coach and team being awarded a 50 million yen [$500,000] bonus if the athlete is a registered corporate league runner.  If another Japanese citizen athlete also breaks the national record in the same race, the lower-placing athlete will also receive 10 million yen [$100,000] and their coach and team 5 million yen [$50,000].

The corporate league Japanese marathon national record attempt incentive will only be paid to registered corporate league runners.  In any of a tentative seven designated domestic Japanese marathons, any corporate league Japanese citizens who run 2:06:59 or better for men or 2:21:59 or better for women will receive a 10 million yen bonus [$100,000], with their coach and team receiving 5 million yen [$50,000].  Men who run 2:07 and women who run 2:22 will also be paid 5 million yen [$50,000], their coaches and teams getting 2.5 million yen [$25,000].  The time standards for these bonuses will be reviewed every two years.

In addition to the marathon, an accompanying "Project Proceed" will offer bonuses to athletes who set records in other disciplines.  Bonus levels and other details are scheduled to be fixed later this year.

Comments

Brett Larner said…
I think the key paragraph here is the third one, the upshot of which is that the push here is to keep Japan's best marathoners racing domestic marathons and not overseas. This will help prop up broadcast ratings and sponsor interest, which is not in and of itself a bad thing, but there's not much doubt that the main problem current Japanese marathoners have is their lack of real international racing experience or ability to cope with unfamiliar environments, conditions, competitors and strategies, and even though the 2020 Olympics will be held domestically I can't help but feel that incentivizing them to stick to well-controlled, carefully-paced domestic time trials might not be the best approach to overcoming those inadequacies.
TokyoRacer said…
Nice that they also included the 10 million yen bonuses. Those times seem achievable.

Most-Read This Week

World Championships Medalist Racewalking Coach Mizuho Sakai Recognized With Highest Coaching Honor

The 2023 Mizuno Sports Mentor Awards recognizing excellence in coaching were held Apr. 23 in Tokyo. Toyo University assistant coach and race walking coach Mizuho Sakai was given a gold award, the program's highest honor, and expressed her thanks and joy in a speech at the award ceremony. The coach of 2023 Budapest World Championships men's 35 km race walk bronze medalist Masatora Kawano , Sakai said, "This is an incredible honor and I'm truly grateful. As a child I wanted to be in the sporting world and I've spent my life in that world. My end goal was always to play a supporting role for other athletes, so I'm honored to be recognized in this way." Sakai's husband Toshiyuki Sakai , head coach of Toyo's three-time Hakone Ekiden champion team, attended the awards gala with her and was also introduced to the audience. After bowing he took a seat in front of her and watched with warmth as she received recognition for her outstanding work. The Mizun

The Ivy League at the Izumo Ekiden in Review

Last week I was contacted by Will Geiken , who I'd met years ago when he was a part of the Ivy League Select Team at the Izumo Ekiden . He was looking for historical results from Izumo and lists of past team members, and I was able to put together a pretty much complete history, only missing the alternates from 1998 to 2010 and a little shaky on the reverse transliterations of some of the names from katakana back into the Western alphabet for the same years. Feel free to send corrections or additions to alternate lists. It's interesting to go back and see some names that went on to be familiar, to see the people who made an impact like Princeton's Paul Morrison , Cornell's Max King , Stanford's Brendan Gregg in one of the years the team opened up beyond the Ivy League, Cornell's Ben de Haan , Princeton's Matt McDonald , and Harvard's Hugo Milner last year, and some of the people who struggled with the format. 1998 Team: 15th of 21 overall, 2:14:10 (43

Hirabayashi Runs PB at Shanghai Half, WR Holder Nakata Dominates Fuji Five Lakes - Weekend Road Roundup

Returning to the roads after his 2:06:18 win at February's Osaka Marathon, Kiyoto Hirabayashi (Koku Gakuin University) took 5th at Sunday's Shanghai Half Marathon in a PB 1:01:23, just under a minute behind winner Roncer Kipkorir Konga (Kenya) who clocked a CR 1:00:29. After inexplicably running the equivalent of a sub-59 half marathon to win the Hakone Ekiden's Third Stage, Aoi Ota (Aoyama Gakuin Univ.) was back to running performances consistent with his other PBs with a 1:02:30 for 8th. His AGU teammate Kyosuke Hiramatsu was 10th in 1:04:00. Women's winner Magdalena Shauri (Tanzania) also set a new CR in 1:09:57. Aoyama Gakuin runners took the top four spots in the men's half marathon at the Aomori Sakura Marathon , with Hakone alternate Kosei Shiraishi getting the win in 1:04:32 and B-team members Shunto Hamakawa and Kei Kitamura 2nd and 3rd in 1:04:45 and 1:04:48. Club runners took the other division titles, Hina Shinozaki winning the women's half