UK's Yamauchi wins Osaka marathon

TOKYO (Reuters) - Britain's Mara Yamauchi won the Osaka International Women's Marathon on Sunday, leaving Japan's squad for this year's Beijing Olympics still up in the air.

Yamauchi finished strongly to win in a personal best of two hours, 25 minutes, 10 seconds in a race which doubled as an Olympic qualifier for the home runners.

Tomo Morimoto was runner-up in 2:25:34 -- insufficient to earn selection to Japan's three-woman team for Beijing -- ahead of Kenyan Julia Mumbi, who crossed the line in 2:26:00.

"I made a mess of things last year," said Yamauchi, who finished ninth in the 2007 world championships in Osaka. "I was determined to be stronger this time."

Japanese hope Kayoko Fukushi faded badly after leading through the 30-km mark in her first full marathon and twice collapsed through exhaustion before finishing 19th.

"It all went blank coming into the stadium at the end," Fukushi told reporters. "My legs went and I can't remember what happened after that."

Reiko Tosa secured one of her country's three Olympic spots after taking bronze at the world championships while Athens gold medallist Mizuki Noguchi is favourite to take another following her victory in Tokyo last November.

Japanese officials will formally name their line-up for the women's marathon after the Nagoya race in March when 2000 Sydney Olympic champion Naoko Takahashi is expected to run.

(Writing by Alastair Himmer; Editing by Clare Fallon)