【Report】Para Athlete (wheelchair T53/T54) race

Tokyo Legacy Half Marathon 2025, the fourth event, started at 8:00 a.m. JST with the wheelchair race. 23 athletes (18 men and 5 women) participated under cloudy conditions with temperatures at 19.1 Degrees Celsius and humidity at 60.0%.

In the men’s division, Tomoki Suzuki (Toyota Motor) who has won consecutively since the first event, placed in top position with a time of 43:08, marking four consecutive wins. Suzuki was part of the top group along with Yoshida and Kishizawa at the beginning, but he maintained a strong lead after the others began to fall behind past the 5km mark. Ryota Yoshida (SUS) who placed third last year came in second at 45:43, with Hiroki Kishizawa (Hitachi Solutions) who was the second place finisher last year placing third with a time of 46:13.

Suzuki was racing just a week after the Chicago Marathon where he placed third. He shared his appreciation. “I am happy for the consecutive win, despite some physical fatigue (such as the organs) which made parts of the race a bit tough. The wonderful thing about this race is that the general runners call out words of encouragement as they pass by from the other lane. I could feel their respect for wheelchair athletes, and it made me happy. I was also able to complete the race even when I was feeling discouraged (in the second half), because of the encouragement.”

He vowed to build upon his accomplishments after extending his consecutive record. “This course is the same as the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games marathon. As the proud representative of the Tokyo 2020 event, I hope to continue winning 5 or even 10 times.”

Yoshida was racing in third place after falling behind Suzuki at the 5km mark but picked up speed in the uphill toward the end of the race to take over second place. “Kishizawa slowed down, and I took the opportunity.” Yoshida had also participated in the Chicago Marathon (placing seventh) along with Suzuki, but he was able to display his strength as a marathon racer familiar with road races.

Kishizawa analyzed his performance. “I used up my energy with the speed adjustments in the first part of the race and couldn’t handle the uphill towards the end.” Having competed in two events (800 meters and 1,500 meters) at the World Para Athletics Championships 2025 in India two weeks ago, he participated in this event with adjustments to his racer to make it “marathon suitable”, including changing to tires that are resistant to going flat. He shared his positive outlook. “It was a good experience switching from the track to marathon, and while I didn’t place as well, I definitely felt some progress from last year.”

The women’s race was highly competitive with 5 athletes. Tsubasa Nakamine (Misato Swimming School) who placed second last year and Wakako Tsuchida (will raise) who won last year, went head to head, and finished with the same time of 52:14. Nakamine had a slight lead at the finish, allowing her to win for the second time after her first win in 2023. Kazumi Takimura (Japan Oracle) placed third with a time of 1:00:22.

Nakamine shared her sense of accomplishment. “I didn’t expect it to be a sprinting competition. I’ve never experienced a finish like that, and I decided to push myself further and further and give my all to complete the race. It was such a great experience securing the win. I hope to compete with grit in the next race as well.”

Nakamine used to consider the uphill to be her weak point, but she has changed her equipment, her form and training. “I reviewed everything. I’m still working on my transformation, and it’s not complete yet, but being able to keep up in the uphill (of the last part of the race) which used to be my weakness, is definitely an accomplishment.”

Tsuchida seemed somewhat disappointed but looked ahead after her close loss. “I was beaten, but it was a very fun race because of the dead heat. There is a lot to learn from the increase and decrease in speed as well as the loss. I’ll work hard again.”

Wheelchair Race Director Masazumi Soejima shared his anticipation. “We finished the race without any major issues. Suzuki showed his strength in the men’s field. Yoshida and Kishizawa have different styles, and we can look forward to more interesting races if Yoshida can work on his agility and Kishizawa can extend his distance.”

He further sent comments of encouragement. “The women’s race was very interesting. I hope Nakamine can carry her confidence over to the next event, and Tsuchida will work toward taking over the top position again.”