Tuesday, January 22, 2008

High School Track Prodigy Megumi Kinukawa Signs With Mizuno, Intends to 'Change the World'

http://www.jiji.com/jc/c?g=spo_30&k=2008012200382
http://www.daily.co.jp/general/2008/01/23/0000810586.shtml

translated and edited by Brett Larner

On Jan. 22, sports gear maker Mizuno announced that Sendai Ikuei High School distance running prodigy Megumi Kinukawa, 18, will join its team after graduating in the spring. Mizuno's team includes hurdler Shingo Suetsu and hammer thrower Koji Murofushi, but Kinukawa will be its first distance runner. At a press conference in Tokyo, Kinukawa told reporters, "My ambition extends to the world. I want to reach a new level in my running."

"My motto is 'Change the World.'" Kinukawa chose Mizuno in large part because she does not want to spend her career running ekidens but would rather focus her energy on track running. In last summer's Osaka World Championships Kinukawa was 14th in the women's 10000 m, the only high school student on the Japanese team. She was injured late last year but this month has returned to regular training and is likely to have the fastest 10000 m qualifying time among Beijing team members. "In the Beijing Olympics I will be targeting a top 8 finish," Kinukawa predicted.

After the Olympics she will shift her focus to...