Book Review - The way of the Runner

A completely new subject - Book on Japanese Running.......

The two countries that most of us know about when it comes to long distance are Kenya and Ethiopia, however very few of us know that Japan is also a very serious and seasoned competitor in the world of long distance running having had 5 Boston Marathon winners till date and many more top level finishes in major races around the world. Japanese and their obsession with distance running is something unknown to a large part of the leisure running community

Author Adharanand Finn an Englishman who is also a very serious leisure runner has written this very engaging book about this journey and stay in Japan to find out what has made this sport so popular in Japan. Finn after having spent time with the elite Kenyan runners now shifts base with family to Japan and in his year long stay meets various stake holders in the Japanese running community.

Running took center stage in Japan mostly after the world war, running was used more as a community building exercise in those difficult times and since then has been becoming popular year after year, the most popular events are the Ekiden ( running relays as they call it ) where teams of anywhere from 5-12 members run over distances from 21 kms - 220 kms sometimes Ekidens last for more than a couple of days.

Ekidens are held at various levels right from the shcool level to corporate championships. In such a scenario it is quite natural that the pool of runners is going to be huge and unlike
other countries like the US or UK running and being part of a top corporate Ekiden team is not a bad idea to make a career and living out of running.

It is no surprise that the timings of many of the top university level runners in Ekiden is on par with some of the best professional runners in the west off course nothing compared to the east African runners. The level of intensity and popularity with which people compete, watch and cheer the top Ekiden runners speaks volumes about how ingrained running is in their culture( Many Kenyan and Ethiopian athletes also are recruited to be a part of Japanaese Ekiden corporate teams). The most popular Ekiden, Hakone Ekiden is to Japan as what Super Bowl is to America or FA cup is to Europe.

That brings the author to a question, why is that in spite of such intense competition and such a large pool of talented athletes, why arent they able to beat the Kenyans, many reasons have been attributed to this which include training.

Japanese believe in this core philosophy in life that if you need to achieve something you have to work hard and the same is used in the field of long distance running, they focus more on covering long mileages very week, running on asphalt roads unlike the Kenyans whose training is more tactical and in the trails on soft mud. This strategy of the Japanese has often lead to runners getting injured at a very young age and hence not reaching their true potential, coaches in Japan focus on discipline to such a large extent that they rarely tell the runners that they should also enjoy what they are doing unlike the Kenyan training atmosphere which is much more fun and relaxed.

As it is the Japanese are known for hard work and putting in long hours at office, the same culture seems to have been carried to the running field also where focus is to always train hard and run long something that the east African runners cannot relate to when they come to Japan and train with the Japanese for the Ekiden runs.

In japan sports is not just about winning but it about using sport to unify body with the soul and that is why they take running so seriously , and Ekiden running is not about an individual running but the team running in harmony, Finn also runs a few Ekidens during his stay in Japan and has very nicely detailed out what it takes to run in an Ekiden. Finn also meets the Marathon Monks also known as the Daigyoman Ajira who is pursuit of spiritual enlightenment run a thousand marathons in thosuand days, they use the time when running in these long distances to reflect upon life and its purpose to attain spiritual mastery.

The pinnacle of success for runners in Japan is winning the Ekiden and that is why so many of them take up to running, even an Olympic qualifying or win cannot replace the thrill that these runners get when they win the biggest Ekiden run in the country which is the Hakone Ekiden. For a Japanese runners who is part of an Ekiden it is not just another team and a run, it is all about Bushido( loyalty , courage and honour) that is how seriously they take this event and competitive running in general.

Finn also writes about his interaction with the country's biggest running star at the moment ,Yuki Kawauchi and his philosophy in life, Yuki has resisted the temptation of joining a Ekiden team to avoid the pressure of performance, instead Yuki who has a regular day job trains on his own and run about 10-12 marathons in a year, in fact a couple of years back he finished 6 marathons under 2 hrs:12 mins time. After having finished 14th in the Tokyo marathon ,Yuki shaves his head as as mark of punishment on himself for faring so badly on home ground, such is the commitment and insanity with which some of these athletes in Japan train .Finn gives another example of a Japanese marathoner Kōkichi Tsuburaya who finished 3rd in the Tokyo Olympics of 1964 and the fact that he let his home crowd down he then takes a vow to get gold in the 1968 Olympics , unfortunately due to some health issues he cannot take part in the games of 1968, unable to bear the ignominy he kills himself and a day later his body is found with the bronze medal in hand.

A lot of research has been done to see why the Japanese have not yet beaten the Kenyans and many reasons have been attributed to it the most important being the training regime itself somethings which is also endorsed by the legendary long distance running coach and Boston Marathon winner Alberto Salazar of the Oregon Project.

A good engaging book, with a decent dose of humour and at the same time you get a glimpse of Japan's obsession with long distance running.