When Shuji Tsukamoto placed second in the Iwai Masakado half-marathon in November his prize was the opportunity to run twice as far.
That it would be in Honolulu was a plus. But to take on his first marathon on one month’s notice? The temptation was to just take the trip, cruise at the beach and pass on the 26.2-mile race.
Ultimately the 30-year-old from Fukuoka who squeezes his training in around his job as a design engineer decided to go for it. If not now, when?
So Tsukamoto, a former swimmer and dodgeball player (come on now, who can make this stuff up?) took his five-digit bib number to the front of the pack with the elite pros from Kenya and a couple of other unheralded Japanese.
But even they weren’t as audacious as countryman Saeki Makino — another guy with what looked like a zip code on his chest — who blitzed out in front and held a sizable lead for 22 miles of the Honolulu Marathon.
TSUKAMOTO embraced a much more reasonable goal: to be the first Japanese finisher. He achieved it, crossing the line eighth overall in 2:23:51, after Makino faded on the way back from Hawaii Kai and finished 16th.
"No teaching, no coach," Tsukamoto said.
Just good luck charms from his girlfriend, Ena Sanui, and the sense to respect the humidity and the Kenyans — most of whom had run this tactical marathon before.
"This is by far the most intriguing major marathon when you think of it as a race," said Todd Iacovelli, a former state cross country champ who worked with the timing crew Sunday. "The conditions make it more of a race and less of a time trial."
It’s very unlikely a world marathon record will ever be set here (some would say it’s impossible). But you will get some fine races and some interesting scenarios — like this one, with Makino gunning it for 22 miles, testing the patience of the pros and the durability of amateurs near the front like Tsukamoto, who admitted to wondering what he was doing still with the front-runners after his 13.1-mile comfort zone.
"I didn’t have time to really train and I was jet-lagged and had no sleep," Tsukamoto said, through interpreter Kayoko Kobayashi.
Despite his inexperience and lack of ideal conditions, he found the discipline not to try to take the lead and the gumption and endurance to hang with that front pack until the last couple of miles when winner Gilbert Chepkwony and two-time champion Nicholas Chelimo, who finished second, broke away.
TSUKAMOTO promises to return next year, better trained and well rested.
"We’ll get him a shorter number," marathon president Jim Barahal said, when told of Tsukamoto’s request for "10" or "4" since he was born on Oct. 4.
A Japanese runner leading most of the race and another finishing in the top ten probably won’t help pump up the visitor/runner numbers, which were slightly down this year. But it can’t hurt.
If Sunday’s race proved anything, it’s the pros are very hard to beat in this sport — from the front or the back. But it’s fun to watch the unknowns with the long numbers try.
Reach Dave Reardon at dreardon@staradvertiser.com or 529-4783 or on Twitter as @dave_reardon. Read his blog at staradvertiser.com/quickreads.
