Japan's Yoshihiko Ishikawa wins 36th Spartathlon race

Japanese runner Yoshihiko Ishikawa was the winner of the 36th Spartathlon, one of the most challenging and historical ultra-marathon races in the world, hosted in Greece.

Ishikawa reached the finish line first early Saturday after covering nonstop 246 kilometers from Athens to Sparta in southern Greece in 22 hours, 55 minutes and 13 seconds, according to the international association that organizes the event each year.

The Japanese runner ranked fourth last year in his first participation in the event.

Czech Radek Brunner ranked second in 23:37:15 this year, as in 2017, while Portuguese Oliveira Joao was the third runner to reach the statue of ancient Spartan King Leonidas in the center of Sparta.

Hungary's Maraz Zsuzsanna won the women's race, ranking 17th in the general division.

The 36th Spartathlon race started at the foot of the Acropolis hill on...