Sister City Marathoners Complete Race in Good Time

Marathoner Daiki Nitta finished Sunday's race under three hours and his fellow runner Hiroko Hamada under four hours, completing this year's sister city swap of runners between Culver City and Kaizuka, Japan.

The two visitors arrived Thursday and are due to return to Japan Tuesday. They were the guests of Tim Petersen and Michelle Henderson, who represented Culver City in the Senshu Marathon in Osaka.

Several Culver City runners accompanied Nitta and Hamada on their run Sunday in the L.A. Marathon. Their race is chronicled on the Culver City Sister City Committee Facebook page.

Two years ago, Nitta was due to run the L.A. Marathon as part of Culver City’s annual sister city trade with Kaizuka. However, he was called into service following the Japanese tsunami that devastated the Tohoku area in March 2011.

The Culver City Sister City Committee scheduled two events, a barbecue on Friday and a farewell dinner Monday night, to honor the two Kaizuka guests.

Since 2000, the commitee has sponsored a runners’ exchange between Culver City and Kaizuka to strenghten ties between the two communities. Runners are welcome to inquire about representing Culver City overseas. 

More information is available on the committee's website. 

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