Rotich wins Lake Biwa Marathon as Alphoce Felix Simbu claims 3rd

Alphonce Felix Simbu of Tanzania
LAKE BIWA-JAPAN 

In warm but windless conditions, Lucas Rotich won a close race at the Lake Biwa Mainichi Marathon in 2:09:11 ahead of Hisanori Kitajima (2:09:16) who was one of four Japanese runners to break the 2:10-barrier on home soil. 

Tanzania's Alphonce Felix Simbu comprised the podium in third in 2:09:19 ahead of Suehiro Ishikawa (2:09:25), Takuya Fukatsu (2:09:31) and Fumihiro Maruyama (2:09:39). Yuki Kawauchi was seventh in 2:11:53while Olympic sixth-placer Kentaro Nakamoto will almost certainly miss out on selection for Rio 2016 in eighth in 2:12:06

Ethiopian teenager Shura Kitata set a blistering early pace and passed through halfway in 62:35 (14:40 5km split from 10-15km) and was on course to break the Japanese all-comers' record but was caught at 29km and faded to 16th in 2:16:09. "The pace was already fast and I thought he would comeback after 30km, so I decided not to chase him," said Rotich. 

Leading European marathon-runner Henryk Szost from Poland dropped out before halfway. With help from Brett Larner / IAAF.

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