The 39th Tsukuba Marathon

The 39th Tsukuba Marathon was held on November 24 under the auspices of the city of Tsukuba, University of Tsukuba, Ibaraki Rikujo Kyogi-kai (IRK), and the Yomiuri Shimbun. Starting from and finishing on the University of Tsukuba campus, 15,000 people took part in the race. They ran surrounded with the autumn colors of the leaves in the haze of light rain on the roads of Tsukuba.

With relatively fine weather for a race this year, the full marathon record for men was broken for the first time in 24 years. The Tsukuba marathon was held under the theme of "Marathon with a Scientific Look" and has the following 6 perspectives: "Start," "Landscape," "Traffic regulation," "Water and food stations," "Running form," and "Cheering." In addition, a new study, "race strategy (pacing)" was conducted. Vice President SATOH Shinobu (Student Affairs) served as the starter for the third wave of the wave start launching out more than 3,000 runners.

The ekiden race team of the University of Tsukuba, which qualified for the Hakone Ekiden for the first time in 26 years, held a panel exhibition at the special booth near the main venue.

Vice President SATOH serving as the starter