Race Directors Dream: Tokyo Marathon Shuts off Applications at 300,000! by Alfons Juck, Note by Larry Eder

TOKYO (JPN): As Race Results Weekly informs, the 2010 Tokyo Marathon closed their entry process with between 280,000 and 300,000 runners requesting entry, a record for any road race in the world. “We will close the entry today,“ said the event‘s communications director Tad Hayano. “The number of entry will be between 280,000-300,000. Tokyo has been growing so quickly as you know.“ The race, which will be held next February 28, recorded 29,108 finishers last year and only allowed 30,000 entrants. That means that a staggering 90% of applicants will be rejected. The 2010 Tokyo Marathon is an IAAF Gold Label road race.
Larry Eder’s comment: So, 30,000 will be able to run Tokyo? Why make 240,000=270,000 other people unhappy, why not develop a series of local marathons in other areas of Japan so that these would be marathoners can find races to run? Or direct them to smaller races, again, to keep them training for another shot at Tokyo?
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