Archive for the Running Category
watching the eclipse
Posted in Kids, pictures, Running, Travel with tags 20h17, eclipse, ghost image, jatp, Parc de Sceaux, Sceaux, solar eclipse, sunset on August 21, 2026 by xi'an
Магучіх синій та золотий [B’ham European Athletics 2026]
Posted in pictures, Running with tags 10000m, Birmingham, Britain, Слава Україні, European Athletics Championships, French TV, high jump, marathon race walk, Rome, UK, Ukraine, Walsall on August 17, 2026 by xi'an
Over the past two days, I watched some events at the European Athletics Championships in Birmingham (if on TV). Partly due to the heat that hugely reduced my range of options. And partly in reminiscence of the 2024 Championships in Rome. Among the amazing feats, Jimmy Gressier’s lead on most of the 5,000m, if not particularly strategic with Jakob Ingebrigsten in his flow, and Gressier’s sprint in the 10,000m. And Nadia Battocletti winning again both 5,000m and 10,000m races, very tactically with a extraordinary burst on the last lap. And Aurélien Quinion finishing third on the marathon race walk, under 3h, so exhausted he turned back after the finish line. And Gianmarco Tamberi repeating his antics and gold medal in the high jump (reaching to his family rather the Italian President this time!). And the much more serene victory of Yaroslava Mahuchikh, the current World and Olympic champion in the high jump. Слава Україні!
women’s circle [women behind the lens]
Posted in pictures, Running, Statistics, Travel with tags Ana Elisa Sotelo, femicides, Gender-Based Violence, Lima, Péru, photography, swimmers, The Guardian, UNiTE to End Violence against Women, Women behind the lens on August 9, 2026 by xi'an
back from Japan [flotsam, jetsam, lagan, and derelict]
Posted in Books, Mountains, pictures, Running, Travel with tags Ainu, Air France, airport food, black bear, deep vein thrombosis, EU compensation rules, Haida Gwaii, Haneda, hiking, Hokkaido, hospital, ISBA 2026, Japan, Japan Airlines, Japanese Alps, jetlag, Krasheninnikov, Mont Bell, Mont-Saint-Michel, Nagano, Nagoya, North, outdoor, ronin, samurai, Sapporo, Tachikawa, TNF, Tokyo, volcano on August 8, 2026 by xi'an
Our last day in Japan was wrecked by Japan Airlines, as our JAL flight from Sapporo to Tokyo Haneda got delayed by five hours… The worst part was being kept in the dark about the delay till the initial departure time and then more as the actual departure time was only given hours later. An opportunity to find out that EU rules about flight compensations and passenger rights do not have a Japanese equivalent..! The only plus side of spending the day at the airport was enjoying a sashimi meal at the Sapporo airport. The next day, the erupting Krasheninnikov volcano in Kamtchatka caused a slight change of flight on the way (North!) back to Paris but Air France still managed a 45mn gain on the planned arrival time. And hardly any jetlag in the following days, as opposed to the unusually long accustomisation through the nights in Nagoya and Tachikawa.
This was the only major hitch of our trip, besides a rental car delay for missing the official translation of our driving licences. Visiting both the Japanese Alps and the island of Hokkaido was a fantastic opportunity, thanks to ISBA 2026. Along enjoying the views and hikes in both locations, I could not refrain from making a connection between the geographies and histories of the Ainus on Hokkaido and of the Haidas in the Pacific Northwest, as they both got colonised and forcibly integrated at about the same epoch, with salmon canning companies enslaving them. The settlers were demoted Union soldiers in one case and former samurais (tondenhei) in the other. Small towns on Hokkaido had some similarities with those of the American and Canadian West, with one-street layout and plenty of space between houses, except for these spaces being intensely cultivated as all of the valleys I saw during that trip. (But very little wildlife, with a single sorry-looking fox, two fleeing monkeys, a single, inquisitive, squirrel, a few deers and no bear.)
On the mountains (and volcanoes) trails, I was impressed by the involvement and preparedness of most Japanese hikers, often quite senior, in climbing volcanoes and facing bear encounters, which also made me discover a very nice local outdoor brand, Mont Bell. (Also finding out that TNF Japan© is a separate franchise with its own products.) And adopt the hiking uniform of wearing shorts and tights, which proved surprisingly comfortable!
Due to a thrombosis scare, I further had the opportunity to visit (again!) the local hospital in Omachi, Nagoya Prefecture, if getting there by bike rather than by water-ambulance. With hugely efficient processing despite the language barrier (except for the doctor with whom I briefly spoke of Mont-Saint-Michel!). And the conclusion of no thrombosis, phew!
Happo [shiny] pond
Posted in Mountains, pictures, Running, Travel with tags Alpine lake, Alpine meadows, Chubu-Sangaku National Park, Hakuba, Happo-one, Hida mountains, hiking trail, Hokujo, Japanese Alps, jatp, Mount Karamatsu, Nagano, vacations on August 4, 2026 by xi'an
