Yoshimi Ozaki Looking for Marathon Gold With Secret Weapon: Honey of the Giant Killer Hornet

Click here to enter JRN's World Championships marathon prediction contest for a chance to win a 2009 Japanese national team singlet.

translated and edited by Brett Larner
source articles below

Marathoner Yoshimi Ozaki (28, Team Daiichi Seimei) will employ a secret weapon in this weekend's World Championships women's marathon in Berlin: the honey of the giant killer hornet suzumebachi. The honey, which Ozaki received from one of her trainers, has been produced by the Fujiwara bee farm in Iwate Prefecture for over 108 years. 500 g costs around $100. In addition to providing energy, the honey reduces the sensation of muscle fatigue during strenuous exercise. "It tastes very rich and is really nutritious," said Ozaki. "I'll be using it to give my body back its energy in the second half of the race. It was pretty effective in training." Ozaki will dissolve the honey into her sports drink and water bottles in hopes that it will convey the power of the suzumebachi, which can fly 100 km per day at speeds reaching 40 km/hr, and give her the energy needed to win.

Ozaki injured her back in the spring and had to take time off from training, but in May she began working out again in Boulder, Colorado. Her condition improved and her form returned, and Ozaki was able to take in everything on the training menu. "I'm in good shape," she said. Her coach, 1991 World Championships women's marathon silver medalist Sachiko Yamashita (44), commented, "The person who gives it 100% of their ability will win. Our goal? A better finishing position than mine."

Ozaki watched the women's 10000 m on TV and was impressed by the performance of Yurika Nakamura, one of her main rivals for the 2012 London Olympics marathon team. "She said, 'I'm going to finish in the top eight as a step toward the London Olympics,' then she went and did it. That's amazing," Ozaki said of Nakamura's performance. "It gives me motivation to work harder too. I'm tenacious and I'll be sticking up front with every loop of the marathon course."

http://hochi.yomiuri.co.jp/sports/etc/news/20090817-OHT1T00007.htm
http://www.nikkansports.com/sports/athletics/2009/news/p-sp-tp0-20090817-532015.html
http://www.nikkansports.com/sports/athletics/2009/news/f-sp-tp0-20090816-531865.html

Comments

Simon Phillips said…

Didn't Naoko Takahashi drink some kind of Hornet juice during the Sydney Olympics?

August 22, 2009 at 3:23 AM

Brett Larner said…

Yes, I think it was something very similar. It's now marketed as VAAM.

August 22, 2009 at 7:45 AM

Most-Read This Week

Morii Surprises With Second-Ever Japanese Sub-2:10 at Boston

With three sub-2:09 Japanese men in the race and good weather conditions by Boston standards the chances were decent that somebody was going to follow 1981 winner Toshihiko Seko 's 2:09:26 and score a sub-2:10 at the Boston Marathon . But nobody thought it was going to be by a 2:14 amateur. Paris Olympic team member Suguru Osako had taken 3rd in Boston in 2:10:28 in his debut seven years ago, and both he and 2:08 runners Kento Otsu and Ryoma Takeuchi were aiming for spots in the top 10, Otsu after having run a 1:01:43 half marathon PB in February and Takeuchi of a 2:08:40 marathon PB at Hofu last December. A high-level amateur with a 2:14:15 PB who scored a trip to Boston after winning a local race in Japan, Yuma Morii told JRN minutes before the start of the race, "I'm not thinking about time at all. I'm going to make top 10, whatever time it takes." Running Boston for the first time Morii took off with a 4:32 on the downhill opening mile, but after that Sis

Saturday at Kanaguri and Nittai

Two big meets happened Saturday, one in Kumamoto and the other in Yokohama. At Kumamoto's Kanaguri Memorial Meet , Benard Koech (Kyudenko) turned in the performance of the day with a 13:13.52 meet record to win the men's 5000 m A-heat by just 0.11 seconds over Emmanuel Kipchirchir (SGH). The top four were all under 13:20, with 10000 m national record holder Kazuya Shiojiri (Fujitsu) bouncing back from a DNF at last month's The TEN to take the top Japanese spot at 7th overall in 13:24.57. The B-heat was also decently quick, Shadrack Rono (Subaru) winning in 13:21.55 and Shoya Yonei (JR Higashi Nihon) running a 10-second PB to get under 13:30 for the first time in 13:29.29 for 6th. Paris Olympics marathoner Akira Akasaki (Kyudenko) was 9th in 13:30.62. South Sudan's Abraham Guem (Ami AC) also set a meet record in the men's 1500 m A-heat in 3:38.94. 3000 mSC national record holder Ryuji Miura made his debut with the Subaru corporate team, running 3:39.78 for 2n

Police Arrest 20-Year-Old Man Charged With Assaulting Female Runner at Popular Tokyo Running Spot

A 20-year-old man has been arrested on charges of sexually assaulting a female runner along the banks of the Tama River in Ota Ward, Tokyo. "I've been stuck at home because of the coronavirus, so I wanted to go for a walk and move my body a bit," the man told police. Local resident Hirai Muroyama , 20, of no known occupation, was arrested on charges of sexual assault. He is accused of acts including grabbing the breasts of a woman in her 20s at around 10 p.m. on May 31 along the banks of the Tama River. According to police, the woman was taking a break in her run when Muroyama approached her silently from behind and grabbed her breasts before running away. Under police interrogation Muroyama told investigators, "I've been stuck at home because of the coronavirus, so I wanted to go out for a walk and move my body. I'd had a few drinks and was feeling pretty hype. She was totally my type." source article: https://news.tbs.co.jp/newseye/tbs_newsey

japan running news

Search This Blog