Large crowds cheer on Japanese winner Yoko Shibui as she heads toward the finish. © www.photorun.net

Almost five years after her triumph at the Berlin Marathon where she set a then-Japanese record of 2:19:41 hours, Yoko Shibui added another victory to her impressive resume Sunday when she won the Osaka Marathon. The 29-year-old Japanese champion crossed the line in 2:23:42—a World Championship-qualifying time and her fastest marathon since 2004.

Sunday’s victory was especially sweet for Shibui. Last November, she struggled in the final kilometers of the Tokyo Marathon, but still managed to finish a very respectable fourth place in 2:25:51. On Sunday, there was no late-marathon wall for Shibui as she sailed through the finish line with a large smile on her face.

Besides Shibui’s incredible race, the Japanese team put on an impressive performance at Osaka. Yukiko Akaba, on her marathon debut, ran a 2:25:40—good for second place. Yumiko Hara was third in 2:26:57, followed by Miki Ohira (2:27:08). The fastest non-Japanese runner was Lidia Simon of Romania who placed fifth in 2:27:14.

Differing from her aggressive, front-running approach that she had been trying out in recent races, Shibui held back at the start. Her patience paid off. She reached the half in a relatively pedestrian 1:13:01. She then picked up the pace. By the 30-kilometer mark (1:43:56), she was in the lead. Yukiko Akaba, Yumiko Hara, Miki Ohira, Madoka Ogi (Japan—who was to finish eighth in 2:27:56), Ruth Wanjiru (Kenya/seventh in 2:27:38) and Lidia Simon trailed her. Her closest pursuer was the young marathoner, Akaba.

Taking a more careful approach in the early stages in Osaka paid off for Shibui. By doing so, she saved her strength for the final 2.2K—a distance she ran in staggering 7:02 minutes.

Shibui’s victory Sunday was her second win in the Osaka Marathon. When she won in 2001, her time of 2:23:11 was then the fastest marathon debut in history.