Tomeichi Ohura

Tomeichi Ohura was born as the son of a farmer and small businessman. After finishing Iino Senior High School in 1910, he attended the Iiyama Teacher Training Center and had to make a daily roundtrip of about 20 km. In 1911, he proceeded to the Kagawa Prefectural Normal School. He participated in the national trials for the marathon of the Stockholm Olympics, but was defeated by Shizo Kanakuri. Nevertheless, he continued to take part in long-distance races and relays with limited success. In 1915, he started working as a teacher but went on to study at Tokyo Higher Normal School. There, he joined the track club (now the University of Tsukuba Athletics Club), where he benefited from runners like Kanakuri.

In 1920, Oura was a member of the victorious team of Tokyo Higher Normal in the first Hakone Ekiden Race. In the same year, he qualified for the Antwerpen Olympics by winning the 5,000 m and placing second in the 10K at the first Japanese trials and winning both events at the second trials. His disappointing appearance at Antwerpen led to greater efforts to promote long-distance running in Japan and particularly the Kagawa prefecture. He then started working as a teacher and was sent to the Japanese puppet state of Manchuria. There, he worked as a teacher and principal at various schools until the end of World War II.

Oura returned to Kagawa prefecture in 1947, where he resumed teaching as well as his involvement in promoting long-distance running, mainly serving organizations in Kagawa Prefecture. After retirement, he started to learn English at a very old age and even was examined as an interpreter. It is said that he ran a distance of seven laps around the earth during his lifetime and inspired many future Japanese marathon runners.

Personal Best: 5000 – 16:37.8 (1932).