Yuka Suzuki (鈴木 優花, Suzuki Yuka, born 14 September 1999 in Daisen, Akita) is a Japanese long-distance runner. In 2019, she won the gold medals in the women's half marathon at the Summer Universiade held in Naples, Italy.[2] The youngest participant[3] dominated the Marathon Grand Championship in October 2023,[4][5][6] guaranteeing her selection for Olympic Games in Paris,[7] in a personal best time of 2:24:09 which she then subsequently beat in 2024 Paris Olympics by 7 seconds despite the hilly course. She is good at running uphills.[8][9]
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| Personal information | ||||||||||||||||||
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| Native name | 鈴木優花 | |||||||||||||||||
| Born | 14 September 1999 Nakasen, Akita (Daisen, Akita) | |||||||||||||||||
| Education | Nakasen JHS Omagari HS | |||||||||||||||||
| Alma mater | Daito Bunka University | |||||||||||||||||
| Employer | Dai-ichi Life | |||||||||||||||||
| Height | 165 cm (5 ft 5 in)[1] | |||||||||||||||||
| Sport | ||||||||||||||||||
| Country | Japan | |||||||||||||||||
| Sport | Long-distance running | |||||||||||||||||
| Event | 1500 metres – Marathon | |||||||||||||||||
| Coached by | Sachiko Yamashita | |||||||||||||||||
| Achievements and titles | ||||||||||||||||||
| Personal bests | ||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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Biography
editSuzuki was born in Nakasen, Akita Prefecture on September 14, 1999, the eldest daughter of educator Shigeki Suzuki and his wife Yasuko.[10] At the age of three she completed a 3-kilometer run without stopping.[10] Suzuki also played basketball as a teenager[10] in her home prefecture of Akita which is famous for its Hoosier Hysteria-like state of basketball fanaticism.[11] After graduating from Omagari High School, she entered Daito Bunka University and gradually became a standout runner.[12] Suzuki was the marathon record holder for Japanese university students, with a time of 2:25:02 achieved on 13 March 2022 at the Nagoya Women's Marathon - her very first marathon.[13][14]
Achievements
editKey: Personal best
| Year | Competition | Venue | Position | Event | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Representing  Japan
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| 2018 | Inter-University Athletics | Hiratsuka, Japan | 1st | 5000m | 15:46.84 (NGR)[15] |
| 2019 | Matsue Ladies Half Marathon | Matsue, Japan | 1st | Half marathon | 1:11:27 |
| Universiade | Naples, Italy | 1st | Half marathon | 1:14:10 | |
| Zevenheuvelenloop | Nijmegen, Netherlands | 4th | 15 km | 48.48 | |
| 2021 | Inter-University Athletics | Kumagaya, Japan | 1st | 10000 m | 32:04.58 (NGR) |
| 2022 | Nagoya Women's Marathon | Nagoya, Japan | 5th | Marathon | 2:25:02 (Japanese Collegiate Record)[16] |
| 2023 | Nagoya Women's Marathon | Nagoya, Japan | 6th | Marathon | 2:25:46 |
| Marathon Grand Championship | Tokyo, Japan | 1st | Marathon | 2:24:09 | |
| 2024 | Olympic Games | Paris, France | 6th | Marathon | 2:24:02 |
References
edit- ^ "鈴木優花、超新星「怖いもの知らず」２４歳ＭＧＣ優勝で初五輪「自分らしく、冷静かつ大胆な走りできた」". スポーツ報知 (in Japanese). 2023-10-16. Retrieved 2023-10-21.
- ^ "Athletics Results Book" (PDF). 2019 Summer Universiade. Archived (PDF) from the original on 10 June 2020. Retrieved 10 June 2020.
- ^ "大舞台で冷静さ光った最年少【解説】鈴木優花 マラソン MGC｜NHKスポーツ". NHKスポーツ (in Japanese). Retrieved 2023-10-21.
- ^ 日刊スポーツ. "【MGC女子】鈴木優花が優勝！２位一山麻緒とパリ五輪内定 細田あい７秒及ばず３位／詳細 - 陸上 : 日刊スポーツ". nikkansports.com (in Japanese). Retrieved 2023-10-16.
- ^ Shimbun, The Yomiuri (2023-10-15). "Koyama, Suzuki Win Qualifying Races in Marathon for Paris Olympics". japannews.yomiuri.co.jp. Retrieved 2023-10-17.
- ^ "Naoki Koyama, Yuka Suzuki Win Japanese Olympic Marathon Trials". CITIUS MAG. Retrieved 2023-10-21.
- ^ "鈴木パリ五輪へ" (PDF). Akita Sakigake Shimpo. 2023-10-15. p. 1. Retrieved 2023-10-19.
- ^ "増田明美さん、鈴木優花は七種競技経験の母のＤＮＡ継承 上り坂強く柔らかいストライドしなやかな走り". スポーツ報知 (in Japanese). 2023-10-16. Retrieved 2023-10-20.
- ^ かみたに接骨院 (2023-10-18). "鈴木優花 選手 圧巻の上り坂のフォーム". X (formerly Twitter) (in Japanese). Retrieved 2023-10-20.
- ^ a b c "家族や恩師、雄姿見届け「驚き、感動」 女子マラソン・パリ五輪決定の鈴木選手｜秋田魁新報電子版". 秋田魁新報電子版 (in Japanese). 2023-10-17. Retrieved 2023-10-18.
- ^ News 2for1, Basketball (2022-05-17). "秋田との"熱狂的バスケ県対決"を制した琉球ゴールデンキングス 「鬼門」SF突破へ島根と対峙". バスケットボールニュース2for1 (in Japanese). Retrieved 2023-10-18.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ^ "陸上・駅伝 - 大東文化大1年の鈴木優花V 日本学生女子ハーフ | 4years. #学生スポーツ". 4years (in Japanese). 2019-03-20. Retrieved 2023-10-19.
- ^ "RESULT" (PDF). iuau. Retrieved 2022-03-13.
- ^ "鈴木優花 2時間25分02秒の学生新 初マラソンながら従来の記録を1分44秒更新／名古屋ウィメンズマラソン". 月陸Online｜月刊陸上競技 (in Japanese). 2022-03-13. Retrieved 2023-10-20.
- ^ 2018学生個人選手権陸上 女子5000m タイムレース1, 16 June 2018, retrieved 2023-10-19
- ^ 和郎, 丸山 (2022-03-13). "大東大の鈴木が日本学生新 女子マラソン界に新星". 産経ニュース (in Japanese). Retrieved 2023-10-18.
