Coach Maeda Calls Osaka Winner Hirabayashi "The Atsushi Fujita of Our Era" (updated)

Koku Gakuin University 3rd-year Kiyoto Hirabayashi, 21, won Sunday's Osaka Marathon in a debut and collegiate record 2:06:18. KGU head coach Yasuhiro Maeda said the secret to Hirabayashi's speed was "the flexibility of his range of motion." At 168 cm and 44 kg Hirabayashi has a "lightweight body," and rather than adding muscle mass the focus has been on increasing flexibility to enable