Home favourite Hirokatsu Tayama secured his place at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games after winning the elite men’s race at the ASTC Triathlon Asian Championships in Hatsukaichi in Japan ©Satoshi Takasaki/JTU

Home favourite Hirokatsu Tayama secured his place at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games after winning the elite men’s race at the ASTC Triathlon Asian Championships in Hatsukaichi in Japan.

Tayama clocked a time of 1 hour 55min 16 sec to finish 11 seconds ahead of China’s Faquan Bai and a further 11 clear of South Korea’s Ji Hwan Kim.

Victory ensures he will be competing at his fourth consecutive Olympics having competed at every Games since making his debut at Athens 2004.

Defending champion Yuichi Hosoda of Japan finished in 19th place with a time of 2:00:53.

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Japan's Ai Ueda won the elite women's race ©Satoshi Takasaki/JTU

There was also success for the hosts in the elite women’s race as Ai Ueda led a Japanese sweep of the podium.

Fresh from her seventh-place finish at this month’s World Triathlon Series event in Cape Town, Ueda registered a time of 2:04:04 to stave off the challenge of compatriots Yurie Kato, second in 2:04:15, and Yuka Sato, third in 2:04:35.

Rio 2016 will be Ueda’s third Olympics having finished 17th at Beijing 2008 and 39th at London 2012.

The ASTC is the last continental confederation to have its qualifying race for Rio 2016.