AKB48 singer Sayaka Akimoto sets sights on Tokyo Marathon

AKB48 member Sayaka Akimoto, 22, will take part in the full Tokyo marathon this year. Last year, she ran in the half marathon. She will run the Hokkaido marathon in May to train for the longer race in Tokyo later in the year.

Akimoto is training under the tutelage of professional distance runner, Akemi Ozaki, who finished second in the 2006 Tokyo International Women’s Marathon.

Akimoto told fans that running in the marathon was her way of starting anew following a scandal last October when tabloid media reported that she stayed overnight at 55-year-old manga author Hiro Oji’s home following a date. The revelation caused a stir, and Akimoto resigned from her position as captain of AKB48’s “Team K,” a denomination of the group.