was a Japanese long-distance runner who is credited by the

International Association of Athletics Federations World Athletics, formerly known as the International Amateur Athletic Federation and International Association of Athletics Federations and formerly abbreviated as the IAAF, is the international governing body for the sport of athletics, coverin ...

for setting a world record in the

marathon The marathon is a long-distance foot race with a distance of kilometres ( 26 mi 385 yd), usually run as a road race, but the distance can be covered on trail routes. The marathon can be completed by running or with a run/walk strategy. There ...

on March 31, 1935. He was one of marathon runners dispatched to

1936 Summer Olympics The 1936 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XI Olympiad () and officially branded as Berlin 1936, were an international multi-sport event held from 1 to 16 August 1936 in Berlin, then capital of Nazi Germany. Berlin won the bid to ...

but did not compete at the games due to his illness. In this game, he ran

10,000 metres The 10,000 metres or the 10,000-metre run is a common long-distance track running event. The event is part of the athletics programme at the Olympic Games and the World Athletics Championships, and is common at championship-level events. The ...

, but his record is unknown. He was known for performance at

Hakone Ekiden , officially called the , is one of the most prominent university ''ekiden'' (relay marathon) races of the year held between Tokyo and Hakone in Japan on January 2 and 3. The race is telecast on Nippon Television. This two-day race from Ōtemac ...

races as a member of the

Nippon University , abbreviated as , is a private research university in Japan. Its predecessor, Nihon Law School (currently the Department of Law), was founded by Yamada Akiyoshi, the Minister of Justice, in 1889. The university's name is derived from the Japan ...

team.Yomiuri Shimbun article
Retrieved November 6, 2009 During the

Pacific War The Pacific War, sometimes called the Asia–Pacific War or the Pacific Theatre, was the Theater (warfare), theatre of World War II fought between the Empire of Japan and the Allies of World War II, Allies in East Asia, East and Southeast As ...

, he was killed in action in the

South China Sea The South China Sea is a marginal sea of the Western Pacific Ocean. It is bounded in the north by South China, in the west by the Indochinese Peninsula, in the east by the islands of Taiwan island, Taiwan and northwestern Philippines (mainly Luz ...

.Fusashige Suzuki
www.sports-reference.com

Notes

References

1914 births 1945 deaths Japanese male long-distance runners Japanese male marathon runners Athletes (track and field) at the 1936 Summer Olympics Olympic athletes for Japan World record setters in athletics (track and field) Nihon University alumni Japanese military personnel killed in World War II Place of birth missing 20th-century Japanese sportsmen {{Japan-longdistance-athletics-bio-stub