Japanese for whatever reason love running; they also love team sports. Thus, the “ekiden” - a long-distance relay - was invented. Premier is the Hakone Ekiden (箱根駅伝), a two-day race from Tokyo to Hakone in Kanagawa and back whose teams consist of university students of five legs each held on 1/2 and 1/3. It is broadcast in its entirety, so prepare your kotatsu and mikan.
The race was founded in 1920 by man named Kanakuri Shizo (金栗 四三 ), born in 1891 in Nagomi, a village in northern Kumamoto, but who is often associated with Tamana, where he attended school. He is best known as the Father of the Japanese Marathon (日本マラソンの父, as seen in the photo below), and he has a fascinating story.
Having set a marathon world record of 2:32:45, Kanakuri was selected as one of the only two athletes that Japan could afford to send to the 1912 Stockholm Olympics. His journey, requiring a ferry and the trans-Siberian railroad, left him so exhausted that he dropped out of his race, being cared for by a farming family before returning to Japan without notifying race officials due to embarrassment. However, in 1967, he was contacted by Swedish Television and offered the opportunity to complete his run. He accepted and completed the marathon in 54 years, 8 months, 6 days, 5 hours, 32 minutes and 20.3 seconds, which remains the longest marathon time in history. Kanakuri remarked, “It was a long trip. Along the way, I got married, had six children and 10 grandchildren.” His story is a lesson of eternal persistence.
The popular NHK program held from 8:00 PM Sundays, “Taiga Drama”, will take up his story from January, and in celebration, Kumamoto has emblazoned his figure on the free shuttle busses which circle the castle. And if you want to impress your Japanese friends, remind them that the “KK” of “KK Wing” stands for “KanaKuri.”- William
