Skip to main content

Kaori Yoshida Quits Second Wind AC

http://www.plus-blog.sportsnavi.com/kmanabu/article/167

by Manabu Kawagoe, head coach, Second Wind AC
translated by Brett Larner

Kaori Yoshida racing in Albuquerque, NM. Photo by John Schrup.

Kaori Yoshida, a member of Second Wind AC since its founding in April, 2007, has left the club following her appearance as a guest runner at the Mar. 15 Kusunoki Marathon. I would like to thank her from my heart for the help she has given SWAC over the last two years and for her competitiveness and dedication in her own running. Yoshida has taken a position with Amino Vital AC and, while working with that club, hopes to continue on as one of the top distance running women. We're all looking forward to seeing the new Kaori Yoshida!

While we're sad that Yoshida has resigned from the club, Second Wind is still looking forward toward our future goals. We remain an organization dedicated both to supporting world-class athletes capable of reaching the Olympics, World Championships, and other major international competitions, and to cultivating young, promising talent. We likewise continue to pursue our main goal of helping amateur runners to reach their own goals.

These three levels form the pyramid of our club's operations. We thank everyone who has helped us in our mission and ask for your continued support in the future.

Translator's note: Kaori Yoshida, winner of the 2006 Hokkaido Marathon and 2008 Casablanca Marathon, was one of the runners who left Team Shiseido with coach Kawagoe in 2007. Kawagoe's Second Wind AC represented a new model for Japanese runners who wanted to pursue a career outside the ekiden-oriented jitsugyodan corporate system. Following the departure of Kenyan Ruth Wanjiru in February, Yoshida is the second major runner to leave Second Wind within the past month.

Comments

Anonymous said…
Who cares about Ekiden. It's not important. What's important is the world champs and olympics. It it true all year jitsugyodan corporate system train for ekiden all year! They don't train for the 10000 meters! We all know toyota industries won the ekiden.

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

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

Weekend Track Roundup

The two-day Hyogo Relay Carnival was the biggest meet of the weekend on the Japanese calendar. Sarah Wanjiru (Daito Bunka Univ.) kicked off her 2nd academic year with a 31:48.11 win in the GP women's 10000 m, beating Pauline Kamulu (Route Inn Hotels) by 4 seconds. Emmanuel Kiplagat (Mitsubishi Juko) had a tighter win in the GP men's 10000 m, 27:58.01 to 27:58.35 over Jonson Mugeni (Asia Univ.). Kenyans also dominated the men's B and C-heats, Nelson Mandela (Obirin Univ.) taking the B-heat by 0.06 over Stephen Muthini (Soka Univ.) in 28:05.37 and Patrick Wambui (NTT Nishi Nihon) the C-heat in 28:14.83. Top Japanese marks across the four races were 32:24.50 by Sora Shinozakura (Panasonic), 28:11.30 by Yuta Nakayama (JR Higashi Nihon), 28:41.68 by Masashi Nonaka (Toyota), and 28:42.38 by former Rikkyo University head coach Yuichiro Ueno (Hiramatsu Byoin). The GP women's 3000 mSC might have been the best race of the meet, both Miu Saito (Nittai Univ.) and Mana