Following a rule change this year sparked by high schools' reliance on foreign runners, international students were only allowed to take part in the shortest sections of the national high school "ekiden" relay races in Japan, limiting their influence on the results.

The impact of the rule change drew attention as international students could only run in the shortest 3-kilometer segments (the second and fifth sections for boys, and the third and fourth sections for girls) in this year's relay event, held in the city of Kyoto on Dec. 22.

Both the boys' champion, Saku Chosei Senior High School, and the girls' winner, Nagano Higashi High School, did not have any exchange students in their teams. It was the first time in 11 years that teams composed solely of Japanese athletes won both races since 2013, when the then Yamanashi Gakuin University-affiliated high school (now Yamanashi Gakuin Senior High School) and Toyokawa High School won in the boys' and girls' divisions, respectively.

The rule change notably affected Kurashiki High School, which had won the boys' race three times in the past decade but fell back in the latest edition.

In the boy's race, exchange students could run in any part of the relay except the longest, 10-kilometer first section. Foreigners who ran in the roughly 8.1-kilometer third section, which is the second longest, often changed the dynamics of the race.

In the latest relay, the Kurashiki High School team could not gain momentum and was in 10th place at the end of the fourth section, and first-year exchange student Shadrack Kiprob Kemboi could not perform as expected in the fifth section, finishing 14th in his segment. The team ultimately finished in 10th place, missing the top eight for the first time since 2014.

Kurashiki High School's coach, Kenji Nakamoto, commented, "With the change in section allocation for international students, we wanted to at least be in the top eight. I kept telling our Japanese members, 'This is your chance to get stronger' but ..." He also expressed his sympathy for Kemboi, saying, "He's naturally suited for long distances, but rules are rules."

In the girls' race, all eight foreign students were concentrated in the third section, which is uphill and tests endurance, dominating the top eight section victories. Lucy Nduta of Aomori Yamada High School set a new section record of 9 minutes and 14 seconds, breaking the previous record by 7 seconds. The gap between her and the fastest Japanese runner, who finished ninth in the section, was 33 seconds.

However, the team could not recover from poor performances in the first two sections, and the shortest third segment could not serve as a race changer.

The altered rule was prompted by growing questions over recent races heavily relying on international students.

Toshinari Takaoka, senior director of the Japan Association of Athletics Federations' High Performance Committee, reflected, "I think it's true that the influence of exchange students has become less pronounced. How to maximize their potential (in the limited sections) is important."

The latest rule regarding international students is not the final decision on how they partake in the races. In a 2019 survey of All Japan High School Athletic Federation's track and field departments across Japan's 47 prefectures, questions about the system were raised, with one saying, "The issue is the purpose and process of them (exchange students) studying in Japan. Even for Japanese nationals, I wonder if advancing to schools from other prefectures, excessive recruitment and tuition waivers are appropriate for high school club activities."

Mizuho Takemura, an associate professor of sports ethics at Toyo University, expressed skepticism about the latest rule change, stating, "The 'entry point' should be clarified before anything. The premise is that competitive activities take place within the context of high school education. How is the academic guarantee and transparency for international students ensured? If the prerequisites for accepting exchange students are not established, tightening section limitations seems like a superficial response, leading to distrust."

The creation of rules regarding foreign students is complex, with perspectives on prioritizing victory and fairness varying by position. Efforts to inch toward resolving this question, which has no right answer, must continue.

(Japanese original by Shun Iwakabe, Tokyo Sports News Department; and Takanori Ikuno, Osaka Sports News Department)