Kengo Suzuki set a Japan men's record in winning the 76th and final running of the Lake Biwa Mainichi Marathon in 2 hours, 4 minutes and 56 seconds on Sunday.
The 25-year-old took the sole lead around the 36-kilometer mark and had enough left in his tank to increase the pace toward the finish line as he eclipsed the previous record of 2:05:29 set by Suguru Osako at last March's Tokyo Marathon.
"I hadn't thought I'd get a time like this. I'm as surprised as anyone," Suzuki said. "Winning the race was the thing I was going for."