Aoyama Gakuin University got a leg up in the pursuit of the Tokyo-Hakone collegiate ekiden championship on Friday, when the school's team won the first day of the grueling road race for the first time ever.
Aoyama Gakuin finished the five-segment, 107.5-km route between Tokyo's Otemachi business district and the spa town of Hakone in 5 hours, 23 minutes, 58 seconds. Meiji University, seeking its first overall championship in 66 years, was second in 5:28:57, while 2014 champion Toyo University was third in 5:30:47.
Komazawa University led through the first four stages, but Kazuki Tamura of Aoyama Gakuin set a race record of 54:28 in the 18.5-kilometer fourth stage, while Daichi Kamino seized the lead over the mountainous 23.2-km fifth stage. Komazawa, seeking its first championship in seven years, slumped to fourth.
Aoyama Gakuin manager Susumu Hara praised his opening runner, Kazuma Kubota for setting the tone, while adding that Kamino was extraordinary.
"Kubota ran the first segment for us with authority," Hara said. "At the end it was superman Daichi Kamino. Even when I think of what he's done till now, I never saw this before."
"We're not going out (tomorrow) to protect our lead. I want us to keep attacking from the time we start heading back down the mountain."
The 109.6 km return leg back to Otemachi is set for Saturday.