The Way of the Runner: A journey into the fabled world of Japanese running

Description

A journey into Japan's fabled running culture from the award-winning author of RUNNING WITH THE KENYANS Welcome to Japan, the most running-obsessed nation on earth, a place where... A 135-mile relay race is the country's biggest annual sporting event Thousands of professional runners compete for corporate teams in some of the most competitive races in the world. Marathon monks run a thousand marathons in a thousand days to reach spiritual enlightenment. Adharanand Finn - award-winning author of RUNNING WITH THE KENYANS - spent six months immersed in this unique running culture to discover what it might teach us about the sport and about Japan. As an amateur runner about to turn 40, he also hoped to find out whether the Japanese approach to training might help him run faster. What he learned - about competition, team work, form, chasing personal bests, and about himself - will fascinate anyone keen to explore why we run, and how we might do it better.

Adharanand Finn is the author of Running with the Kenyans, which was the Sunday Times Sports Book of the Year, won Best New Writer at the British Sports Book Awards, and shortlisted for the William Hill Sports Book Award. He is an editor at the Guardian and a freelance journalist. He is also a former junior cross-country runner and now competes for Torbay AC in Devon, where he and his family usually live. Follow him on @adharanand.