I ran the Osaka Marathon again this year in very poor condition, with symptoms of a runny nose starting on Wednesday and having to take the next day off work because I couldn't move.
Some of my seniors advised me to abandon the race because of a cold, or to have the courage to retire from the race if I got sick on the way out, but I held my nerve.
I hadn't run for a while because I caught a cold. How could I suddenly run a full marathon?
To make matters worse, it was even snowing on the way. Too cold🥶 Everyone was wearing ponchos and disposable raincoats to protect themselves from the cold. I also wore a windbreaker under the disposable poncho I bought before last year's Osaka Marathon, and two long-sleeved shirts under that. I layered a white windbreaker between last year's poncho and a long-sleeved pink shirt.
This time, I arrived at the starting point very early,
In the same E block, a boy wearing nothing but a shirt with no thermal protection was shivering.
Wouldn't it be better to use the restroom before the start of the race? So I went to a nearby restroom.
However, the men were holed up in the Japanese-style toilet for more than 5 minutes. What? What are they doing in the toilet for more than 5 minutes?
Perhaps defecation? No, it doesn't look like that.
My morning run buddies were also waiting for the restroom and talking about what they were doing.
Perhaps to solve men's specific physical problems?
Hey, you know, do you understand the situation that we're all waiting for?
What do you think you were doing?
As a result, I finished the race but was 5 hours over. I caught a cold, so it was inevitable. My personal best so far is sub-5 at Osaka Marathon 2024, and I could have aimed for sub-4.5 if I hadn't caught a cold.
Osaka Marathon 2025 was the ordeal race - very cold with snow
Pre- and post-race management issues, the governor's complacency, and the political color of the race.
In addition to the lack of restrooms, the post-race traffic line was terrible. What we runners expected was to have a towel and medal placed directly around our necks by a volunteer at the finish line. But this time it was different. We were treated so cold-bloodedly that we each took one unimportant snack or instant noodle first, and then went to get our towels and medals ourselves at the end. Some of them were carried away on a stretcher due to hypothermia.
After all, it is a concession-ridden event. Only a few people can't stop laughing, and runners from far away can't catch the bullet train home. The organizers are only interested in money, and as long as they are happy, they don't care if the rest of us freeze to death. I am very proud of all the volunteers, though.
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