Why is Japan’s marathon strong

🇯🇵 1. The unique foundation of ekiden culture
The biggest feature of Japan is the ekiden.
Ekiden is popular from elementary school students to working adults
gain early “running for the team” experience
develop the ability to run long distances at a steady pace
The ekiden is the same as the marathon
✔ Pace Management
✔ patience
✔ Concentration
Because of the need for , the ability to directly connect to marathons is naturally trained.
🏫 2. Strength and continuity of school sports
In Japan,
Middle School → High School → University → Business Group
The major advantage is that there is a clear path to continuing long-distance running.
in particular
high school ekiden
Hakone Ekiden (Ekiden of Hakone)
is highly influential as a goal,
You can put yourself in a high-level competitive environment while you’re young.
🧠 3. Sticky and unbreakable lace style
One of the characteristics of Japanese runners is that,
skip too much from the first half
be large and difficult to stall
keep one’s form and rhythm to the end
This is,
**It goes well with the Japanese way of thinking that values patience, politeness, and planning.
As a result,
✔ Stable record
✔ High completion rate
It is connected to .
🏃‍♂️ 4. high practice and seriousness
Japanese long-distance athletes are,
have a high mileage
not skip daily practice
thoroughly lay the foundation for
There is a strong tendency that.
Even if it’s not flashy,
*“The power to build up the obvious”* is a big weapon in marathons.
🌍 5. Spread of citizen marathon
Japan has a very high level of citizen runners.
have a lot of full marathon events
Running is close to home
be full of support and management
This environment is a very important part of the,
✔ Large number of competition population
✔ soil where excellent players grow
is supported.
⚖️ 6. Conversely, there are challenges
While strong, Japan also has challenges.
World’s top (African) speed tolerance
adaptation to high-intensity training
risk of failure among young people
Therefore, in recent years,
✔ Scientific training
✔ Overseas training camp
✔ Emphasis on nutrition and recovery
and so on.
🏁 Summary: Why Japan Marathon is so strong
In a nutshell,
“Because the culture of running is rooted in society as a whole.”
The foundation of an ekiden,
Serious build-up,
Environment to be cheered on.
Together,
The strength of Japan’s unique marathon has been created.