Japanese runner wins first Asiad gold
BANGKOK (JP): Naoko Takahashi of Japan took the first gold medal of the 13th Asian Games here on Sunday after clocking a time of two hours 21 minutes and 46 seconds to win the women's marathon.
Takahashi also grabbed the Asian record, previously 2.29:32 set by China's Huandi Zhong at the 1994 Asiad in Hiroshima. The diminutive Japanese was just 61 seconds shy of the world mark set by Kenyan runner Tegla Laroupe in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, in April.
Chang Kim of the People's Republic of Korea finished second with 2.34:54, while another Japanese, Tomoko Kai, was third with a time of 2.35:00.
Indonesia's sole representative in the race, Ruwiyati, failed not only to win a medal, but also to improve her personal best time. She finished fifth with a time of 2.37:33, two minutes slower than her record-breaking time at the 1995 Southeast Asian (SEA) Games in Chiang Mai, Thailand's second largest city.
The 42.195 km women's marathon started at Wiran Phra Mongkhonbophit in the province of Ayuttaya.
The 26-year-old Takahashi took the lead from the outset of the race and was well ahead of the pack after 25 kilometers.
Unlike most victorious runners, Takahashi did not take a victory lap after crossing the finish line at the Thammasat University stadium.
"I'm very happy. I just wanted to break the national record, but halfway into the race I was sure I could break the world record. Unfortunately, starting from the 30th kilometer, the weather was getting hotter, while before it had been cloudy," she told reporters after the competition.
Takahashi, formerly a 5,000 and 10,000 meters specialist, set Japan's national record of 2.25:48 at the Nagoya International marathon in March. That was only the second marathon for the rookie, who moved had just moved up from the 5,000 and 10,000.
Takahashi's coach, Yoshio Koide, said: "Naoko really likes to run and she can go fast in the first 30 km. But in the last few kilometers, she just tries to maintain her pace."
Koide said he had expected Takahashi to clock no better than 2 hours and 26 minutes.
Tears
Ruwiyati could not hide her tears after failing to finish in the top three. She cried when Indonesia's National Sports Council chairman, Wismoyo Arismunandar, came over and kissed her forehead to console her.
"I'm really disappointed with my poor performance. I should have finished among the top three, but other runners fared better than me today," said the 19-year-old runner.
Ruwiyati trailed in third place after 25 km but surged ahead to second over the next five kilometers.
However, the Indonesian ran out of the steam in the last five kilometers. She let Chang Kim and Pan Jinhong pass her in the sprint to the finish at Thammasat Stadium.
Track and field expert Paulus Pasurney, said that Ruwiyati has achieved better than expected since she suffered from osteoporosis in 1996.
"She had to undergo medical treatment for about a year and only competed twice this year. This is her best result since recovering from her bone problem," Paulus said.
Indonesia's chef de mission, Mochamad Hindarto, said there were a lot of lessons Ruwiyati could learn from her first appearance at the Asiad.
"She still has a long career. I think she can win in Asia someday. She's only 19," he said.
There were also tears of frustration for snooker star James Wattana, tipped to be Thailand's first gold medal.
So confident were the organizers that the snooker schedule was rearranged so that Prime Minister Chuan Leekpai could present the 29-year-old Wattana with the gold, AFP reported.
But the plot went horribly wrong when he crashed 5-1 to Hong Kong's Chan Kwok-ming in the first round.
Wattana rushed straight out of the stadium without talking to the posse of nearly 60 Thai journalists chasing him.
After holing himself up for more than 30 minutes inside the practice hall under the Muang Thong Thani stadium, Wattana finally emerged to a throng of reporters and photographers before pouring his heart out.
"I'm sorry to everyone who were cheering for me," said Wattana, trying to fight back tears.
"I feel like I've let down the people of Thailand. I should never have been playing in this event with the form I'm in at the moment.
Meanwhile, top tennis stars Yayuk Basuki of Indonesia and Tamarine Tanasugarn of Thailand involved in a war of words.
Tamarine fired the first volley by complaining at the treatment she received from a partisan crowd when playing in Indonesia last year. But Yayuk hit back by slamming the wild crowds who did their best to distract her as she played at the Southeast Asian Games in Chiang Mai in northern Thailand in 1995.
"Every country is like that, not just Thailand," Tamarine retorted. "In Davis Cup as well there is a lot of emotion with people wanting their country to win. It's not just Asian countries.
"But I understand there being a problem in Chiang Mai because there were not that many people who know tennis."