Haile heads Tokyo field

JRN reports
The Tokyo Marathon has announced the elite field for this year's fifth running, to be held Feb. 27. Following through on his pre-retirement crisis promise, world record holder Haile Gebrselassie (Ethiopia) will return to the marathon distance after his DNF at November's New York City Marathon.

Gebrselassie faces what is without a doubt the strongest field in Tokyo's short history, including 2010 and 2009 winners Masakazu Fujiwara (Team Honda) and Salim Kipsang (Kenya), 2010 Biwako Mainichi Marathon winner Yemane Tsegaye (Ethiopia), 2010 Hokkaido Marathon winner Cyrus Njui (Kenya/Team Hitachi Cable), 2008 Kenyan XC champion Gideon Ngatuny (Team Nissin Shokuhin) in his marathon debut, recent 2:07 man Paul Biwott (Kenya), 2:07 runner and former teammate of Fujiwara's Hailu Mekonnen (Ethiopia), veteran great Felix Limo (Kenya), top-ranked Japanese debutant Yoshinori Oda (Team Toyota), and, thus far unsuccessful at the marathon in his first two attempts, sub-hour half marathoner Mekubo Mogusu (Kenya/Team Aidem). It will not be an easy task for aging legend Haile to add another win to his legacy.

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