Reiko Tosa will probably be running the Osaka Marathon in Janauary as her World Championship qualifier.
The course is ridiculously flat and the weather usually cooperates. Osaka is a good city as Japanese cities go, and Lornah Kiplagat says the the organization is nothing but First-Class all the way.
You need to begin the application process NOW if you want to run this race. All elite Japanese marathon require a letter of permission from the athlete's home federation, and still then there is no guarantee that the athlete will run the race. They wont let you know that you are accepted until about 4-6 weeks prior to the race.
Jason