Eda aims to make best out of Universiade experience

Seiya Eda is hoping to make the best out of his experience in the XXVIII Summer World University Games when competition in athletics starts today at the Gwangju World Cup Stadium in Seo-gu District in Gwangju City, South Korea.

Eda

Eda will be among the 1,120 athletes who will see action in athletics’ 25 events and he will race in the 1,500-meter run.

Northern Marianas Athletics coach Kurt Barnes said the former Saipan Southern High School middle distance runner will only compete in one event.

“Only in the 1,500m run. He won’t have the proper recovery time to do the 5,000m and 10,000m runs,” said Barnes, who is also the head of the two-member CNMI delegation, in an email to the SaipanTribune.

The first of three heats in the men’s 1,500m run begins at 6:15pm local time at the Gwangju World Cup Stadium or the Universiade Main Stadium. Korea is just an hour behind Saipan.

Heat 2 is set 10 minutes after, while the last one is at 6:35pm. If Eda advances, he will be competing in the finals on Friday at 8:15pm.

Barnes said Eda has already acclimatized in Gwangju’s cool climate. Temperatures yesterday reached 68 degrees Fahrenheit (20 degrees Celsius) with slight rain, while today’s weather is expected at 79 degrees Fahrenheit (26 degrees Celsius) with cloudy and a couple of showers.

“It took Seiya a couple of days of slow and long distance running to get used to Gwangju’s climate and the temperature change. He has adjusted now and is ready to go for a personal record,” said Barnes, who left with Eda last July 2.

A total of 13,000 athletes are competing in 18 sports, spread out in 273 events, in the biennial Universiade Games.

“The Organizing Committee has done a wonderful job of preparing and organizing this elite event. A total of 35 high rise apartment buildings are being used to house the athletes and a huge dining hall that seats 4,000 serves delicious food 24 hours a day,” said Barnes. “Korea is very nice and everyone is enjoying the Games.”

Moroccan Said Aouita’s Universiade record of 3:38:43 in the 1,500m run remains unbroken for more than three decades now. The former four-time Mediterranean Games champion and 1984 Los Angeles Olympics gold medalist made the feat during the 1981 edition in Bucharest, Romania.

Compatriot Hicham El Guerrouj, on the other hand, is the world record holder as the two-time Olympic champion set the best time of 3:26:00 during the Rome Grand Prix on July 14, 1998.