Their marathon will be a race of words.

They'll be communicating with exhausted and sweaty runners who will vocalize their thoughts while trying to catch their breaths.

Onamae wa? (What's your name?)

Dooshimashitaka? (What happened?)

Daijobu desu ka? (Are you OK?)

They'll quickly translate those responses from Japanese into English, relay them to medical personnel, and then converse back in Japanese.

For some 100 Japanese translators, Sunday's Honolulu Marathon is a race of words, reassurances and using Japanese honorific suffixes at the 13 medical tents stationed along the 26.2-mile course. They'll be helping the weary wave of participants who will be seeking assistance for blisters, dehydration and aches.

Their presence reflects the overwhelming number of Japanese who fly here for the marathon. In years past, about 60 percent — or 15,000 competitors — have come from Japan. Not all seek medical attention, but for those who do, the translator is a bridge between two languages and, potentially, life and death.

"We don't ask translators to be medically savvy, we ask them to be there to be the communication link," said Michelle Hashimoto, assistant to the marathon medical director who recruits the translators. "They're there to calm them down and relate simple terminology to the runner."

The translators come with a diverse background of language abilities in both English and Japanese. They are former Japanese nationals now living in Hawai'i, Japanese students studying here, and local high school students studying the language. Some are third- and fourth-generation Japanese who grew up here knowing a few phrases, then found themselves using the language in their jobs.

"I thought it would be cool to test my Japanese and see how I can translate and communicate with Japanese people," said Allurie Eliazar, a ninth-grader at St. Francis School. "I thought it was going to be a good opportunity."

The volunteers are provided with a list of common phrases such as: "What is your name?" "I have a headache," "My feet are sore," and "Please sit down over there while our medical staff helps you." Some schools provide additional training for their students. They don't need to be proficient in medical terminology, just be comfortable enough to converse in Japanese.

And translators will be supported by medical personnel. More translators are still needed for Sunday.

St. Francis ninth-grader Bianca Dukesherer will be pulling a full day at the marathon, helping at the water station with classmates in the morning, then heading to one of the medical tents in the afternoon. She hopes the experience will allow her to "use my Japanese language more."

"I want to be able to speak it any time," Dukesherer said.

Returning to the finish line's medical tent will be Mami Nikaido, who started volunteering when she was a student at Intercultural Communications College, an English language school in Honolulu.

"I was just curious about what was going on," Nikaido said of her first marathon. "It was a really good experience to me. I had many good experience with the medical staff and runners and Japanese runners and some disability runners."

Nikaido continued to volunteer after she left the school and while completing her master's degree in marriage and family therapy at Argosy University. She's seen Japanese celebrities in the marathon, to a runner who passed out and eventually died, and helped Japanese runners negotiate their way around the finishing area. Having worked the last seven or eight marathons, Nikaido made some suggestions to the runners.

"Bandage in pockets for blisters and also get enough liquids like water ... don't hesitate to stop or rest if you feel sick.

"We always welcome everybody, we can talk and help them."

NOTE: Those interested in volunteering as translators can contact Michelle Hashimoto at shellhashi@gmail.com or 741-5854. Work shifts are 4 a.m to 9:30 a.m. and 9 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.