Blessed with Weather and Views of Mt. Fuji, the 2024 Mt. FUJI 100 Concludes

 

The international trail running event, Mt. FUJI 100, held from April 26 to 27, 2024, concluded on Saturday, April 27 at 10:00 PM with the final deadlines for the "FUJI100mi" 166.6km race and the "KAI70k" 69.4km race.

Due to congestion on parts of the course during the race, the deadline was extended by one hour from the original schedule.

In the "FUJI100mi," Courtney Dauwalter (USA) won the women's race, and Guomin Deng (CHN) won the men's race. This was Dauwalter's second victory at this event, following her win in 2018. She made history as the first female athlete to finish within 20 hours and placed third overall, including both men and women.

The "KAI70k" was won by Andreu Simon Aymerich (Spain) and Yuri Yoshizumi (Japan) in the men's and women's divisions, respectively.

Please refer to the attached documents for the overall and age group award winners, as well as the recipients of the New Hero Award given to outstanding athletes under 29. Additionally, the documents include data on the number of finishers and completion rates for both races.

Today's award ceremony highlighted several topics.

(Guomin Deng, inspired by words from Tsuyoshi Kaburaki, clinches victory)
Guomin Deng, the men's winner of the FUJI100mi, shared a private episode with Tsuyoshi Kaburaki, the president of the Mt. FUJI 100. "Last year, I had the opportunity to meet Mr. Kaburaki, visiting Beijing. He encouraged me, saying, 'Our time as athletes is limited, so we should train hard and participate more in international events.’ I was feeling down due to an injury at the time, so I am grateful to Mr. Kaburaki for recognizing that I have the potential to transcend China and Asia."

(Ryo Murata, grateful for the fun times with athletes from around the world and Japan)
Ryo Murata, who finished third in the FUJI100mi and was the top Japanese runner, commented on his impressive result. "Running with strong and wonderful athletes while viewing Mt. Fuji from start to finish was a fun time. I am happy to have finished third and will return to Mt. FUJI 100."

(Courtney Dauwalter grateful to experience the journey around Mt. Fuji again)
Courtney Dauwalter, who became the FUJI100mi champion for the second time following her 2018 victory, spoke about her experience in front of the gathered audience. "I feel fortunate to have been able to come to Japan and travel the trails around Mt. Fuji on my own feet. Mt. Fuji showed us its magnificent form throughout the race. Thank you to the organizers and volunteers, and congratulations to all runners and supporters. Thank you for guiding us to the finish."

(Angie Yan touched by being sent off into the night trail with a saxophone)
Angie Yan, who placed third in the women's FUJI100mi race, introduced herself in Japanese to the audience and then spoke about an unexpected gesture at the start of the race. "The volunteers made sure we didn't get injured or lost on the cold mountain top at night. I would like to give special thanks to the person playing the saxophone at CP1 (Checkpoint 1 in Fujinomiya, 25km from the start). You truly brightened my night. Thank you."

(Andreu Simon vows to return to Mt. FUJI 100)
Andreu Simon, who was supposed to debut in the 100-mile trail running race at Mt. FUJI 100, switched his focus to the KAI70k due to an injury but won impressively. "The view of Mt. Fuji against the morning sun from the course was very beautiful, and it was an unbelievable experience. I will definitely participate in this race again." 

(Tsuyoshi Kaburaki's project to run all races in the Gran Canaria World Trail Majors begins)
During the award ceremony, Tatsuo Chiba, co-representative of Mt. FUJI 100, along with Janet Ng and Steve Brammer, organizers of the Anta Hong Kong 100, introduced the Gran Canaria World Trail Majors, which both events are part of. At the end of the introduction, Tsuyoshi Kaburaki announced his challenge to complete all ten races of the World Trail Majors over five years, starting with today's FUJI100mi. "I am excited about this plan to complete all the events by the year I turn 60. Please cheer on me, and I encourage everyone to take on this challenge as well."