The Japan Association of Athletics Federations and others have announced that they will integrate the "Lake Biwa Mainichi Marathon," which has the longest history of marathon events in Japan and has been held as a representative selection for the Olympic Games, with the "Osaka Marathon" from next year.
The tournament in February next year will be the last to be held on the current course that runs along the shores of Lake Biwa.
The "Lake Biwa Mainichi Marathon" started in 1946 in Osaka City, and then moved to Shiga Prefecture.
The participation qualification record has been set high, and it has been highly evaluated as a tournament in which only top-level athletes from Japan and overseas participate, and it has been held as a representative selection for the men's marathon of the Olympic Games and World Championships.
However, the environment surrounding the marathon has changed drastically over the past ten years, and the Tokyo Marathon, which has a large-scale citizen marathon, has received international acclaim.
On the other hand, the "Lake Biwa Mainichi Marathon" is extremely difficult to become a citizen marathon, mainly due to the traffic conditions of the course, and the Japan Association of Athletics Federations and others have held it as a marathon on a scale next to the Tokyo Marathon for nine years to continue and develop the history of the marathon. We decided that it would be best to integrate it with the "Osaka Marathon".
The tournament in February next year will be the last to be held on the current course that runs along the shores of Lake Biwa.
In addition, the integrated tournament will be held in February next year, centered on the current Osaka Marathon course, and discussions will be held on the management framework in the future.
History of "Lake Biwa Mainichi Marathon"
At the Lake Biwa Mainichi Marathon, which has the longest history in Japan, many famous runners have colored the event.
At the 16th tournament in 1958, Ethiopia's Abebe Bikila, who ran with a dashi stock at the Rome Olympics the previous year and won a gold medal and attracted attention as "Abebe Bikila", will participate, and the roadside will be seen at a glance. It was full of spectators.
Toshihiko Seko, who is currently the leader of the Japan Association of Athletics Federations' Marathon Strengthening Strategy Project, participated in the 43rd competition in 1988.
While suffering from the heat of over 18 degrees Celsius and the wind peculiar to Lake Biwa, he overturned his anxiety about injury and took the seat of the representative of the Seoul Olympics with a complete victory that separated the second place by more than 3 minutes.
At the 58th tournament in 2003, 21-year-old Masakazu Fujiwara, who was ranked 3rd among the top Japanese, decided to represent the world championship in 2 hours 8 minutes 12 seconds, which is still the highest record in Japan for the first marathon. It was.
Shogo Nakamura, the representative of the Tokyo Olympics Men's Marathon, will participate in the 73rd Otoshi Tournament.
I became the top Japanese and advanced to the MGC = Marathon Grand Championship, creating an opportunity to pave the way for the Olympic team.
What is "Osaka Marathon"?
The Osaka Marathon is the second largest citizen marathon in Japan after the "Tokyo Marathon" that started nine years ago.
The course includes tourist attractions in Osaka such as Midosuji and Tsutenkaku area for the purpose of letting participants know the charm of Osaka.
The tournament scheduled for last month was postponed due to the effects of the new coronavirus, but last year's tournament was attended by approximately 32,000 people from 57 countries and regions around the world.
On the other hand, while the World Athletics Federation ranks "Platinum" and "Gold" for the competitions of each country according to the appearance of invited athletes and the management situation, the Osaka Marathon also has been promoting overseas leading athletes from last year's competition in order to increase the value of the competition. I invited him and aimed to improve his position as a competitive race.
Osaka Marathon Organizing Committee "I want to raise it to the world level"
At the meeting on the 25th, the Osaka Marathon Organizing Committee decided to prepare for the integration with the "Lake Biwa Mainichi Marathon".
Masayoshi Matsumoto, chairman of the Organizing Committee, interviewed after the meeting, said, "In the world, there is a trend toward competitions in which elite runners and citizens run together. By integrating the two marathons, the competition will be brought to the world level. I want to raise it. "
On top of that, "Lake Biwa Mainichi Marathon is also a tournament loved by everyone in Shiga Prefecture as an early spring tradition, and I think that some people may feel lonely, but I think that it will be convinced by growing the integrated tournament brilliantly. Isn't it? "
In addition, the committee members who attended the meeting commented, "I want you to improve the competitiveness without compromising the attractiveness of the Osaka Marathon as a citizen marathon."