is a Japanese

long-distance runner Long-distance running, or endurance running, is a form of continuous running over distances of at least . Physiologically, it is largely aerobic in nature and requires stamina as well as mental strength. Within endurance running comes two d ...

who competes in

marathon race The marathon is a long-distance foot race with a distance of , 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 are also wheelchair div ...

s. Her personal best time is 2:25:10 hours, achieved in August 2009 in

Sapporo ( ain, サッ・ポロ・ペッ, Satporopet, lit=Dry, Great River) is a city in Japan. It is the largest city north of Tokyo and the largest city on Hokkaido, the northernmost main island of the country. It ranks as the fifth most populous city ...

. She is a member of the Second Wind running club in Japan. She represented her country at the

2007 World Championships in Athletics The 11th World Championships in Athletics, () under the auspices of the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF), were held at Nagai Stadium in Osaka, Japan from 24 August to 2 September 2007. 200 of the IAAF's 212 member federat ...

and at the

Asian Games The Asian Games, also known as Asiad, is a continental multi-sport event held every four years among athletes from all over Asia. The Games were regulated by the Asian Games Federation (AGF) from the first Games in New Delhi, India, until t ...

in 2006 and 2010 (winning the silver medal at the former edition). Born in the Ōshima District in

Yamaguchi Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Chūgoku region of Honshu. Yamaguchi Prefecture has a population of 1,377,631 (1 February 2018) and has a geographic area of 6,112 km2 (2,359 sq mi). Yamaguchi Prefecture borders Shimane Prefecture t ...

, she attended

Kokushikan University is a private university in Setagaya, Tokyo, Japan. Combined teams of the Graduate School of Engineering and the Department of Science and Engineering competed against 130 team and came in 11th place in the 27th Formula SAE in 2007. This is the ...

and graduated in 1999 with a degree in

physical education Physical education, often abbreviated to Phys Ed. or P.E., is a subject taught in schools around the world. It is usually taught during primary and secondary education, and encourages psychomotor learning by using a play and movement explorat ...

.Kiyoko Shimahara

World Marathon Majors The World Marathon Majors (WMM) (known for sponsorship reasons as the Abbott World Marathon Majors) is a championship-style competition for marathon runners that started in 2006. A points-based competition founded on six major marathon races reco ...

(2007). Retrieved on 2011-11-01. She made her debut over the marathon distance at the Japanese student championships in 1997. Her first marathon victory came at the 2003 Katsuta Marathon, where she ran a course record time of 2:28:17 hours. She came third at the

Tokyo Marathon The is an annual marathon sporting event in Tokyo, the capital of Japan. It is a World Athletics Platinum Label marathon and one of the six World Marathon Majors. The latest edition of the race took place on . It is sponsored by Tokyo Metro. ...

in 2003, then improved to second place behind

Bruna Genovese Bruna Genovese (born 24 September 1976 in Montebelluna) is an Italian long-distance runner who specializes in the marathon race. Biography Genovese won the Italian under 21 half-marathon championship in 1998. She ran her first marathon on 24 Oct ...

at the same competition the following year, setting a personal best of 2:26:43 hours in the process. Shimahara improved further at the 2005

Hokkaido Marathon The Hokkaido Marathon held in Sapporo, Hokkaidō, Japan, is one of the prominent marathon races of the year. The staging area as well as both the start and finish lines are in Odori Park starting between Nishi 3-chome and Nishi 4-chome and the fi ...

, running 2:26:14 and taking the runner-up spot. In 2006, opened her season with a personal best of 1:10:16 hours at the Miyazaki Half Marathon, then came third at the

Osaka Ladies Marathon The is an annual marathon road race for women over the classic distance of 42.195 kilometres which is held on the 4th or 5th Sunday of January in the city of Osaka, Japan, and hosted by Japan Association of Athletics Federations, Kansai T ...

. She made her foreign debut at the Boston Marathon, where she finished in fifth place.Shimahara Kiyoko
Marathon Info. Retrieved on 2011-11-01. She gained her first international call-up for Japan at the

2006 Asian Games 6 (six) is the natural number following 5 and preceding 7. It is a composite number and the smallest perfect number. In mathematics Six is the smallest positive integer which is neither a square number nor a prime number; it is the second small ...

and she was the marathon silver medallist behind China's

Zhou Chunxiu Zhou Chunxiu (; born November 15, 1978, in Sheqi County, Henan) is a Chinese marathon runner. She competed at the 2008 Olympic Games, finishing the marathon in 3rd place. She placed fourth in the marathon at the 2005 World Champion ...

. These performances led to her being selected for the Japanese women's marathon squad at the

. She finished sixth at the World Championships Marathon in Osaka. At the 2007

London Marathon The London Marathon is an annual marathon held in London, United Kingdom, and is the 2nd largest annual road race in the UK, after the Great North Run in Newcastle. Founded by athletes Chris Brasher and John Disley in 1981, it is typically he ...

, she withdrew mid-race for the first time, pulling up just after the halfway point due to breathing difficulties.Shimahara Kiyoko
. JAAF. Retrieved on 2011-11-01. At the start of 2008 she came eleventh at the Nagoya Marathon, but rebounded at the

Chicago Marathon The Chicago Marathon is a marathon (long-distance foot race) held every October in Chicago, Illinois. It is one of the six World Marathon Majors. Thus, it is also a World Athletics Label Road Race. The Chicago Marathon is the fourth-largest r ...

with a third-place finish to reach the podium. Shimahara ended her year with a win at the

Honolulu Marathon The Honolulu Marathon (branded JAL Honolulu Marathon for sponsorship reasons) is a marathon (26.2 miles or 42.2km) in Honolulu, Hawaii, first held in 1973. It is one of the world's largest marathons, taking place annually on the second Sunday in ...

in a time of 2:32:36 hours. Despite a sixth-place finish at the Tokyo Marathon, the 2009 season proved to be one of Shimahara's most successful. She won the Osaka Half Marathon then set a course record and personal best of 2:25:10 hours to win at the Hokkaido Marathon in

. She was the runner-up at both the Yokohama Marathon and the Honolulu race that year. Shimahara was fourth at the 2010

Nagano Marathon The Nagano Olympic Commemorative Marathon ( ja, 長野オリンピック記念長野マラソン) is an annual marathon road race which takes place in mid-April in Nagano, Japan. It is an IAAF Bronze Label Road Race competition. The Nagano Ma ...

and was selected to compete for Japan at the 2010 Asian Games in

Guangzhou Guangzhou (, ; ; or ; ), also known as Canton () and alternatively romanized as Kwongchow or Kwangchow, is the capital and largest city of Guangdong province in southern China. Located on the Pearl River about north-northwest of Hong Kon ...

. However, she did not win a medal on her second performance at the Games, finishing fifth overall. In 2011, she was the runner-up at the Hokkaido Marathon and the inaugural Osaka Marathon. She also ran at the Tokyo Marathon that year but placed fifteenth in that race. She had only one outing in 2012: at the Osaka Marathon she came fifth in a time of 2:29:51 hours. A year passed before she returned to competition, again in Osaka, and she managed third on that occasion.October 2013
AIMS. Retrieved on 2013-10-29.

Achievements

References

External links

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Shimahara, Kiyoko 1976 births Living people Japanese female long-distance runners Japanese female marathon runners Sportspeople from Yamaguchi Prefecture Asian Games medalists in athletics (track and field) Athletes (track and field) at the 2006 Asian Games Athletes (track and field) at the 2010 Asian Games Asian Games silver medalists for Japan Medalists at the 2006 Asian Games 20th-century Japanese women 21st-century Japanese women