The Tokyo Marathon took place yesterday (Sunday). The winner was Hailu Mekonnen of Ethiopia with a time of 2 hours, 7 minutes, 35 seconds. Second was Paul Biwottof Kenya with a time of 2:08:17, and third was Yuki Kawaguchi of Japan with a time of 2:08:37. Mekonnen's win was not record-breaking, however, falling 11 seconds short of the record set in 2008 by Viktor Rothlin of Switzerland.
The 36,000 people who ran in the marathon this year still made up only a fraction of the 330,000 who applied.
In the Marathon's present form, this time was the fifth Tokyo Marathon - and, thanks partly, perhaps, to the unseasonably warm spring-like weather (about 18 degrees) - it was the first Tokyo Marathon not to be rained on.
The Tokyo Marathon starts at the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building and finishes at Tokyo Big Sight. The 10km finish point is Hibiya Park.
Ginza, Tokyo's most famous shopping district, is on the course, and the photos here are of the Tokyo Marathon banners that festooned Ginza's streets.
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