ATHLETICS

Kenyan student runners go missing from Japanese schools

Saturday 04th July, 04:54 AM JST

NAGOYA —

A Kenyan female student who belonged to a high school ekiden long-distance relay club went missing in April after being expelled from the school in Aichi Prefecture that won last December’s national high school ekiden, Aichi prefectural officials revealed Friday.

A Kenyan male student who was an ekiden runner at a high school in Gifu Prefecture also went missing for one and a half years prior to reporting to immigration authorities in April, school officials said Thursday.

The privately-run Toyokawa High School in Toyokawa, Aichi Prefecture, expelled the 17-year-old girl at the end of March because her school attendance record was insufficient, the prefectural officials said. She then became unaccounted for in late April after her request to return to class was rejected by the school and she remains missing.

Meanwhile, the privately-run Chukyo High School in Mizunami, Gifu Prefecture, said its former student, now 20, belonged to the school’s athletic club and took part in the national ekiden before he went missing in September 2007, according to the school officials.

Hisashi Wada, 46, vice principal of the school, said, ‘‘We do not know where he was and what he was doing. I think he has already been deported as he reported himself to the immigration authorities.’’

Kyodo

› Login to comment

8 Comments

buddha4brains at 07:36 AM JST - 4th July

So these schools invite these runners to help promote their schools but they have not responsibilities to make sure they integrate into the school system? What is it, just "Hey you, run fast!" and then forget about them until the next race?
knackerz at 08:21 AM JST - 4th July

I wonder if the shoe was on the other foot would this be on the front pages for months? If Japanese kids went AWOL abroad there would be hell to pay.
timeon at 01:02 PM JST - 4th July

so what's there to integrate? she gets a scholarship, she doesn't go to class. she gets expelled. why should Jp people pay more money for her?
stirfry at 02:02 PM JST - 4th July

@timeon: by the same token, why should japanese benefit from taxes that foreigners are forced to pay ?
sunny117 at 02:04 PM JST - 4th July

RUNNERS are supposed to RUN (away)
cnc at 02:06 PM JST - 4th July

the question is what made her run away in the first place
timeon at 03:49 PM JST - 4th July

stirfry, because they live and work here. what's the purpose of paying a student that doesn't fulfill the minimum requirements? I was on a scholarship for 7 years, and the requirements were clearly written on the contract. now I pay taxes (lots of), as any other citizen that lives here, and I'm really pissed to hear that my money goes to some lazy a** who doesn't even bother to show up to classes
kirakira25 at 04:41 PM JST - 4th July

We don't know what madeher run away in the first place, but a Kenyan in Aichi? I wouldn't mind betting there is a lost more to this than they are letting on. this is a lonely place to be in Tokyo for a full-grown adult who speaks Japanese. A young girl/boy in Aichi on their own who maybe doesn't speak the language, far from home? I wouldn't mind betting this is a case of Hikikomori