Record-breaking 2020 Tokyo-Hakone race’s downhill results helped by thick-soled Nike shoes – The Mainichi

TOKYO — Nike Inc.’s thick-soled running shoes, which have helped athletes break one record after another in marathons and other races on level ground, also had a marked beneficial effect on competitors running downhill in the 2020 edition of the annual Tokyo-Hakone Round-Trip College Ekiden Race.

Many athletes wore Nike shoes, mostly in pink, to compete in the 2020 edition of the Jan. 2-3 road relay. Runners race on a course comprising 10 stages across two days, from central Tokyo’s Otemachi to popular resort town Hakone, in Kanagawa Prefecture, and then back again. The courses there and back are each over 100 kilometers. This year, a total of 13 runners set new records in seven of the 10 stages.

Although the shoes are attracting attention for their high-rebound midsole, which makes them some of the world’s fastest shoes, another special feature is their cushioning system.

“The thick soles reduce damage on runners’ legs and help people running downhill, even if only a little,” commented Tokai University’s Ryoji Tatezawa after completing the sixth section during the return leg on the second day, referred to as the “descent from the mountain,” with a record time of 57 minutes and 17 seconds. His time was 40 seconds shorter than the previous record.

Though many runners say that after the “descent from the mountain,” even level ground feels like running uphill, Tatezawa did not lose speed as he reached level ground and wowed the audience by closing the gap between him and his competitors running ahead of him.

Kenta Murayama, a member of a company team who was awarded for his performance in the fifth stage during the Jan. 1 All-Japan Men’s Corporate Ekiden Championships and who helped Asahi Kasei Corp. win four years in a row, has been using Nike’s thick-soled shoes for some time. He also spoke about the product’s effect on downhill running: “Going downhill is actually easy (with the shoes). Because it reduces damage on runners’ legs when descending, competitors can easily continue to run on level ground.”

The fifth stage, the last of the Tokyo-Hakone race’s first day, is referred to as “climbing the mountain.” From the highest point to the very end of this stage, however, is a descent. Three competitors in the fifth section and two runners in the sixth set new records, all wearing thick-soled running shoes. For those competing in long-distance races, the thick-sole trend is unlikely to end.

(Japanese original by Hitoshi Kurasawa, Sports News Department)