Today, we have announced the entire elite and elite wheelchair fields of the Tokyo Marathon 2023, including both international and Japanese athletes.

■Tokyo Marathon 2023 Elite Field

To see the full lists of the marathon elite field click here.
*Some of the athletes' age and record information, as well as bib number, included in the elite field list (sent out on January 26) was incorrect. Revised version is now available. (As of January 27, 2023)

■Race Preview

Tokyo Marathon Race Director Tadaaki Hayano

I would like to express my profound gratitude to all of those who have worked so hard to make this event possible.

With the changing of the finish line's location in 2017, the Tokyo Marathon has become a fast marathon, and both male and female runners have established new record times in Japan. In 2018, Yuta Shitara (Honda) broke the Japanese men's world record for the first time in 16 years, and the record was broken again in 2020 by Suguru Osako. The Tokyo Marathon is bringing new vitality to the marathon world.

At the 2021 event last year, Eliud Kipchoge (Kenya), a men's world record holder, won the race in 2:02:40, a new record for Japan. Brigid Kosgei (Kenya), a women's world record holder, took first place by finishing in 2:16:02, the third fastest time in the marathon's history. The Tokyo Marathon has evolved into a historic race, one of the top marathons in the world, in line with its longstanding dedication to becoming a global standard.

The Tokyo Marathon 2023 has been constantly exploring what direction to take, including which athletes it would invite. I want it to be a race in which Japanese athletes compete with runners from around the world in preparation for the Marathon Grand Championship (MGC) to be held this fall, which will serve as a qualifier for the 2024 Summer Olympics to be held in Paris next year.

To read the full story, click here.

■Tokyo Marathon 2023 Elite Wheelchair Field

To see the full lists of the elite wheelchair field, click here.

■Wheelchair Race Preview

Tokyo Marathon Wheelchair Race Director Masazumi Soejima

This year's Tokyo Marathon will be the first race of AbbottWMM Series XV. Competitors for the wheelchair elite athlete race have been chosen from top-ranking finishers, both men and women, in last season's Series XIV. Athletes will be striving to earn series points, and I look forward to seeing some high level racing.

Wheelchair racing became part of the AbbottWMM Series in the 2016-17 Series X, but in the last season (Series XIV), changes were made to the prize system on September 30, 2022. Initially, prizes were awarded to finishers in 1st to 3rd place, but this has been expanded to be from 1st to 5th place, and the prize money for the wheelchair race has been equalized to the same level as the elite athlete race. (Ref: 1st place: $50,000, 2nd place: $25,000, 3rd place: $12,500, 4th place: $7,500, 5th place: $5,000)

For wheelchair athletes, a lot of the joy of racing comes not only from the prize money, but also from having wheelchair racing recognized as a sport. These changes further motivate competitors to strive for victory, and I'm very happy that they were made. I hope the athletes demonstrate a high level of racing during the race.

To read the full story, click here.