Interview Relay 42 Stories of the Tokyo Marathon
〜Connecting Hearts〜

Interview Relay: 42 Stories of the Tokyo Marathon ~ Connecting Hearts~

The 12th interviewee is Mr. Daichi Kamino.

Mr. Kamino, known as the “god of mountains,” led the team to a championship of the Hakone Ekiden race during his university days, and is currently very active as a professional runner.  In 2022, he launched “RETO RUNNING CLUB” as he had wished to get his experience and know-how for running faster across to city runners. He will touch on the appealing points and value of the Tokyo Marathon as well as his prospect for popularizing running through his club, from the perspective of the active runner and the organizer of the running community. 

The Tokyo Marathon is the most special race.

 

—What is the value and the role of the Tokyo Marathon from the perspective of the organizer of the running community? 

 RETO RUNNING CLUB is a running community for goal-oriented runners, so how attractive their target race is an important factor which significantly affects their motivation toward running. I believe that of all the races, the Tokyo Marathon is the most special race for them. 

 

—As the Tokyo Marathon has started and has become one of the Abbott World Marathon Majors, what changes have you noticed in the running culture? 

 I feel that the Tokyo Marathon creates opportunities for people with various attributes to be interested in and take part in marathon/running. Needless to say, the Tokyo Marathon is a dream race and very special for runners who aim for their target time but also thanks to the Tokyo Marathon, those who are not regular runners or who do not usually enjoy running can be exposed to running. 

 

—What do you find appealing about the Tokyo Marathon? Why do you think runners want to run the Tokyo Marathon? 

 As expected, I find it very attractive to run through the heart of Tokyo, to the fullest. For those who reside in Tokyo, the course itself is attractive as they do not usually get to run on it even though they know the course in work or private scenes.  For those who live outside Tokyo, the course is still attractive as they are familiar, feeling “I have seen it on TV!” Another aspect is the special excitement that the race has. There are so many participants, and the cheers on the sidelines are unwavering. And of course, cheers give an extra boost for runners. 

 

Earned the ticket to MGC in the Tokyo Marathon 2019, which was a last chance. 

 

—Please share with us your memorable story of the Tokyo Marathon. 

 It is the Tokyo Marathon 2019. It was a tough race with the heavy rain and low temperature of just 4 degrees Celsius. It was my last chance to qualify for the MGC (Marathon Grand Championships), the selection race for the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020. In this race, I won fourth place among Japanese runners and eighth place among all, resulting in earning a ticket to participate in the MGC, so it is such a memorable race for me. 

 

–The Tokyo Marathon Foundation has set a vision of the “Tokyo Marathon, the best marathon in the world, held in Tokyo, the best city in the world” based on three pillars: “The safest and most secure race in the world,” “The most exciting race in the world,” and “The warmest and most friendly race in the world.” What is your view on this? Also, do you have any expectations for the future Tokyo Marathon?

 I find these three pillars wonderful. I want the Tokyo Marathon to become the most popular race among all the Abbott World Marathon Majors. 

Moreover, from the standpoint of an elite runner, the criteria for selecting a race include the ease of the course in breaking a record and the cheers and excitement of the race in terms of the number of participants. I think that the current Tokyo Marathon already fulfills these conditions where elite runners all over the world want to run. 

On the other hand, this is not about the Tokyo Marathon, but last year, I ran the Hokkaido Marathon for the first time as a city runner. I participated in the marathon from a perspective different from invited athletes who get to go into a race usually in a privileged environment, and I really felt the importance of safety. 

 

I want to convey the appealing points of setting a goal and committing to running.

 

—What does the Tokyo Marathon mean to you? #MyTokyoMarathon is…？

 I only want to run the Tokyo Marathon with commitment and dedication. I have run the Tokyo Marathon three times, one a success, one a regret, but for all of the races, I set a big goal and committed myself to the fullest.  In the Tokyo Marathon, the world’s top athletes and Japanese top athletes gather, and also for the city runners, it has a very special excitement. If I were to run it, I would absolutely want to prepare myself fully and want to run as a big target race. If it is for the Tokyo Marathon, I feel that I could train myself hard, feeling highly motivated. While I am an active runner, I won’t treat it as a casual run. Of course, when I retire, I’d love to participate and enjoy it purely for the fun.

 

—Do you have any expectations for the future Tokyo Marathon and are there any measures that you wish the Tokyo Marathon to take in order to liven up the running culture? 

 I want the Tokyo Marathon to continue to be an attractive marathon that many people want to aim for and to run. It would be great if people all over the world in addition to Japanese people think and “want to run the Tokyo Marathon.” It would be nice if the Tokyo Marathon-related events were organized throughout the year, or creating opportunities for new people to start running and existing runners to enrich their running experience.

 

—What are the measures RETO RUNNING CLUB takes? Please share with us the future prospects for the running club. 

 

 There is a wide variety of ways to run, ranging from fun runners to those who participate in a race and aim to break their records. It is OK for each person to have a different way to enjoy running. But for us, we believe in the power of setting goals and committing to running, and we want to share that with others.We do engage in communicating these appealing points but our first priority is to support the members of RETO RUNNING CLUB to experience these appealing points. Further, we find it important that by setting a goal and committing to running, the members feel that their lives are enriched. By inspiring those closest to us, from there, their family and friends will be inspired, reaching even further. Indeed, several family members of our club members have tried a marathon for the first time, inspired by our club members.