Izumi Maki (athlete)

Izumi Maki
Personal information
Native name
真木 和
NationalityJapanese
BornYamaoka
(1968-12-10)December 10, 1968
DiedOctober 18, 2018(2018-10-18) (aged 49)
Sport
CountryJapan
SportAthletics
Event(s)
Marathon, 10,000m
TeamWacoal
Achievements and titles
Olympic finals12th (1992, 1996)
World finals22nd (1991 IAAF World Cross Country Championships)
17th (10,000m 1993 World Championships in Athletics
National finals1st (10,000m 1992)
Personal best(s)31:40.38 (10,000m), 2:27:32 hrs (marathon)

Izumi Maki (真木 和, Maki Izumi; née Yamaoka (山岡); December 10, 1968 – October 18, 2018 in Namikata, Ehime)[1] was a Japanese long-distance runner who competed in the marathon. She represented her native country twice at the Summer Olympics: in 1992 (12th place in the 10,000 metres) and 1996 (12th place in the women's marathon). She competed for the Wacoal corporate team during her career.

In addition to her Olympic appearances, Maki competed three times at the IAAF World Cross Country Championships (1991 to 1993) with her best performance being 22nd in the 1991 women's race. She was also a two-time participant at the World Championships in Athletics in the 10,000 m, coming 20th in 1991 and 17th in 1993. She won the Japanese Championship in the 10,000 m once in her career, in 1992.[2]

Maki had back-to-back wins at the Shibetsu Half Marathon in 1993 and 1994,[3] and also won the Gold Coast Half Marathon in the latter year.[4] She was the initial winner of the 1995 Sapporo Half Marathon in a time of 70:10 minutes but was disqualified for a doping violation and banned for three months.[5]

Later in her career she focused on marathon running. She won the 1996 Nagoya International Women's Marathon and the Pilot Marathon in 1998.[6][7] She retired from the sport in the late 1990s. She is now a training advisor to the Fujita Running Academy.[8]

Maki holds the Asian record for the infrequently contested 20,000 m track race,[9] a mark which was formerly the world record for the event.[10]

She died of breast cancer on October 18, 2018.[11] She was 49.

Personal bests

International competitions

Representing  Japan
Year Competition Venue Position Event Notes
1991 World Championships Tokyo, Japan 20th 10,000 m 33:27.84
1992 Olympic Games Barcelona, Spain 12th 10,000m 31:55.06
1996 Nagoya Marathon Nagoya, Japan 1st Marathon 2:27:32
Olympic Games Atlanta, United States 12th Marathon 2:32:35

References

  1. ^ "Olympics Site Closed | Olympics at Sports-Reference.com". www.sports-reference.com. Retrieved 2026-01-28.
  2. ^ "Japanese Championships". www.gbrathletics.com. Retrieved 2026-01-28.
  3. ^ "Shibetsu Half Marathon". www.arrs.run. Retrieved 2026-01-28.
  4. ^ "Gold Coast Marathon". www.arrs.run. Retrieved 2026-01-28.
  5. ^ "Women's non-legal half-marathon". www.alltime-athletics.com. Retrieved 2026-01-28.
  6. ^ "Nagoya Intl. Women's Marathon". www.arrs.run. Retrieved 2026-01-28.
  7. ^ "Pilot Marathon". www.arrs.run. Retrieved 2026-01-28.
  8. ^ "F・R・A・藤田ランニングアカデミー/真木 和". www.fra-net.jp (in Japanese). Archived from the original on 2021-09-22. Retrieved 2026-01-28.
  9. ^ Association, Asian Athletics. "Asian Athletics Association | Promoting Athletic Excellence in Asia" (PDF). Asian Athletics (PDF). Retrieved 2026-01-28. {{cite web}}: |archive-url= requires |archive-date= (help)
  10. ^ "undefined | World Athletics". worldathletics.org. Retrieved 2026-01-28.
  11. ^ "Former Olympic runner Izumi Maki dies of cancer at 48". The Japan Times Online. 2018-10-25. ISSN 0447-5763. Retrieved 2018-10-25.
  12. ^ "JPN Record Progressions- Track". www.arrs.run. Retrieved 2026-01-28.