Mizuo Matsuda, who will compete as a member of the women's marathon team at the World Championships in Athletics to be held in Hungary in August, expressed her enthusiasm for the event, saying, "I want to stand on the starting line in the best condition and run well."
On the 29th, the Japan Association of Athletics Federations held an awards ceremony in Tokyo for the JMC=Japan Marathon Championship, which competes in rankings based on points based on results in major marathon events.
The award ceremony was attended by Kenya Keita, who will represent the men's marathon at the World Championships in August, and Matsuda, who represents the women's marathon.
Matsuda, who will be competing for the second consecutive year, expressed his enthusiasm, saying, "I wanted to get revenge for my lack of coordination last year, and I want to practice and get on the starting line in the best condition and run well."
With the MGC = Marathon Grand Championship coming up in October, Matsuda commented on participating in the World Championships in August, "I thought it would be a great experience to have the opportunity to compete at the top level. I told him why.
He also said, "I believe that winning a prize at the World Championships and competing for a medal will lead to the Paris Olympics, and I want to build my legs until the Games."
The top two finishers in the MGC for next year's Paris Olympics will be selected for both men and women, and the remaining one spot will be determined based on the results of the qualifying races held after the MGC.
The Japan Athletics Federation announced the target races on the 2th, and the men's race was the Fukuoka International Marathon in December, the Osaka Marathon in February next year, and the Tokyo Marathon in March,
and the women's race was the Osaka International Women's Marathon in January and
the Nagoya Women's Marathon in March.
In this race, the highest ranked athlete will be selected for the national team from among the athletes who have broken the dispatch setting record to be announced in the future, and if no player has broken the dispatch setting record, the third place player in the MGC will be selected.