Running News Daily

Ethiopians Make Impact at TCS Toronto Waterfront Marathon

On a record setting day more than 6,200 runners crossed the line making the 2024 TCS Toronto Waterfront Marathon the largest marathon in Canada.

Ethiopian women once again filled the top four places with the first three smashing the course record.

Waganesh Mekasha crossed the line first in a marvellous time of 2:20:44 to claim the $20,000 winners’ purse together with $10,000 for beating the course record. The record of 2:22:16 had been set by Kenya’s MagdalyneMasai in 2019.

A year ago Waganesh had finished one second behind the winner and returned here with victory in mind.

“I had prepared very well and I thought I could get the course record,” she said through a broad grin. ‘I thought I might get 2:21. I didn’t expect 2:20 so I am very happy.”

Second place went to Roza Dereje, who was returning to marathon racing after taking three years off to start a family. The Olympic 4th place finisher in 2021 she has a personal best of 2:18:30 and had been boldly insistent that she wanted a pacemaker to take the leaders out at course record pace. She got her wish.

The four-woman Ethiopian contingent passed half way in 1:10:19 but at 30km there were just three of them left, Waganesh, Roza and Afera Godfay.

“Around 35 -37km is where I made my move,” Waganeshsaid afterwards while waving to a Toronto spectator who hails from her village in Ethiopia. “From there I pushed on and that is where I was able to separate.”

Roza was pleased with her performance and praised her compatriots.

“I praise the Lord first, I am very happy with the run and with the time,” she declared. “I am happy for my kids and my husband. It has been three years (since her last marathon) and I am happy. I came to win but I am very happy with what I got.”

Following Roza home was Afera Godfay to repeat her third place finish from a year ago but this time she was rewarded with a a new personal best of 2:21:50.

The TCS Toronto Waterfront Marathon is a World Athletics Elite Label race and doubles as the Canadian Championships. It was Natasha Wodak, a two-time Canadian Olympian and current national record holder at 2:23:12, who claimed the championship gold medal while finishing 5th overall.

After chasing the Olympic standard in 2023 and early 2024 and falling short she was delighted with her first championship in her favoured distance. She drew encouragement from the fact her time of 2:27:54 was her fastest since 2022.

“I am really happy that I was able to win,” she said as her parents and her coach Trent Stellingwerf looked on. “ Ididn’t feel awesome in the second half but I had an amazing pacer who was encouraging me and when I needed to slow down we would slow down and when I felt good we would speed up.

“I didn’t feel that great which is a little frustrating but to still run sub 2:28 when you are not feeling great on a windy day I am happy with that.”

The Canadian championship silver medal went to Leslie Sexton (2:33:15) with the bronze going to Rachel Hannah (2:34:33).

Mulugeta Uma, who is a member of the Ethiopian armed forces, won the men’s race in 2:07:16. He had also come to Toronto hoping to produce a course record (2:05:00). When the pacer dropped out at halfway reached in 63:01 he pushed the pace all the while encouraging those around him to share pacemaking duties.

Eventually Kenya’s Domenic Ngeno took on the role and opened up a ten-second lead which appeared to undo the field. But Mulugeta was unfazed.

“I was running my own pace I saw (Domenic) move ahead but I knew he would come back to us because I was running my own pace,” he revealed later. “It was very hard. It was cold and very windy so it was very difficultrunning. I didn’t get the time but I got the win.”

Ngeno hung on for second place in 2:07:23 a three second improvement over his previous personal best.

“I was thinking I would run ahead of that guy from Ethiopia,” said Ngeno. “I knew he was very strongbecause he has a personal best of 2:05:33. When the group caught me I knew I would be on the podium. I am happy with my second place.”

Third place went to Noah Kipkemboi of Kenya who also recorded a personal best with 2:07:31.

The Canadian men’s title went to Vancouver’s Justin Kent who ran a personal best of 2:12:17. He had run aggressively from the start accompanied by a dedicated pacemaker who took him through half way in 65:13.

"I felt fantastic - until we hit the wind in the last 8k,” he said afterwards. “I felt really, really good, holding back a lot, and then the pace faltered a little bit. I was just zoned in on the pacer. There were two 5km splits there where we were running 15:50, which allowed them to come back a little bit. My legs felt great just the wind was not so fun.”

At one point a chasing pack of Canadians closed the gap paced by his friend and training partner, Ben Preisner. Yet, he was able to hold them off before extending the margin .Second place went to Lee Wesselius in 2:13:52 with Andrew Alexander, who was making his marathon debut, taking the bronze medal in 2:14:13.

“I knew at the first turnaround they were a lot closer than I thought,” Kent continued. “I knew that was potentially going to happen but I knew they were just as sore as I was. I was a little bit worried that they might work together in the wind. That’s a hard stretch to run into the wind that last 8km. I was able to pull away the last couple of kilometres.”

Both Kent and Wodak earned valuable World Athletics points for their Canadian Championships which they hope will earn then places on Canada’s 2025 World Championship team bound for Tokyo.

(10/20/2024) Views: 165 ⚡AMP
by Paul Gains

TCS Toronto Waterfront Marathon elite field announced for 2024

We are just 10 days away from Canada’s largest race weekend: the 2024 TCS Toronto Waterfront Marathon. Since 2015, this event has also served as the annual Canadian Marathon Championships. This year’s race will feature everything from former champions and national record holders to rising stars looking to make their mark on the 42.2 km distance.

Here’s your cheat sheet for the men’s and women’s elite fields in Toronto.

Canadian men’s field

Andrew Alexander (Toronto): The 25-year-old former NCAA standout won the 2023 Toronto Waterfront Half-Marathon in 62:44. He is coached by Matt Hughes, the Canadian record holder in the men’s 3,000m steeplechase, and former Canadian marathoner Dave Reid. Alexander is aiming for a sub-2:10 finish at his hometown marathon.

Thomas Broatch (Vancouver): The reigning Canadian marathon champion. He was the first Canadian across the line last year in his marathon debut (2:16:25). Four months later, Broatch took another shot at the distance, lowering his personal best by more than four minutes at the 2024 Houston Marathon (2:11:54).

Justin Kent (Surrey, B.C.): This will be Kent’s first time competing at the Toronto Waterfront Marathon. He ran his PB of 2:13:07 at the 2023 Prague Marathon, earning him a spot on Team Canada’s men’s marathon team for the 2023 World Athletics Championships.

Maxime Leboeuf (Gatineau, Que.): Leboeuf finished third at the 2022 Montreal Marathon in 2:24:25. He’s a former graduate of Queen’s University XC program and an avid cross-country skier.

Kieran McDonald (Halifax): McDonald will be making his marathon debut in Toronto. He ran his half-marathon best of 65:45 at the 2024 Houston Half Marathon in January.

Alex Neuffer (Stratford, P.E.I.): Neuffer ran his PB of 2:21:34 at the 2022 Boston Marathon, finishing as one of the top Canadians. He’s a graduate of St. Francis Xavier University’s XC program and a training partner of Kieran McDonald (see above). 

Thomas Nobbs (Vancouver): The 25-year-old will be running his second-career marathon in Toronto. He made his debut in Philadelphia last fall, running 2:19:13. Nobbs finished just off the podium at the 2024 Canadian 10K Championships, in 29:31. He also finished second at the Canadian Half Marathon Championships in Winnipeg in June.

Sergio Ráez Villanueva (Mississauga, Ont.): Ráez Villanueva has competed at the Toronto Waterfront Marathon for the last two years. He set his best of 2:18:04 here in 2022 (his marathon debut). Ráez Villanueva is self-coached and also coaches youth athletes in his hometown of Mississauga.

Tristan Woodfine (Cobden, Ont.): Coached by former Canadian Olympic marathoner Reid Coolsaet. Woodfine won the half marathon here in 2022. He has the fastest time among Canadian men in the field, with a PB of 2:10:39 from Houston earlier this year.

International men’s field

Elvis Cheboi (Kenya): Cheboi ran his personal best of 2:09:20 to win the 2023 Toronto Waterfront Marathon. (Reigning champion)

Mulugeta Uma (Ethiopia): Uma ran 2:05:33 to win the 2024 Paris Marathon in April. He has the fastest personal best in the men’s field.

Abdi Fufa (Ethiopia): Fufa finished just off the podium at the 2024 Dubai Marathon in January (2:06:23). He ran his PB of 2:05:57 at the Siena Marathon in 2021 (where he was second). The 29-year-old is looking for his first marathon win.

Hailu Zewdu (Ethiopia): The 29-year-old ran his PB of 2:06:31 at the Dubai Marathon in 2020. He has not broken 2:09:00 in his six marathons since.

Gizealew Ayana (Ethiopia): Ayana is the youngest elite athlete in the field–he’s only 21. He ran his PB of 2:07:15 to win the 2023 Paris Marathon in his debut at the distance.

Domenic Ngeno (Kenya): The 26-year-old is the fastest Kenyan marathoner in the Toronto field. He won the 2024 L.A. Marathon in March in 2:11:01. Ngeno’s PB of 2:07:26 was from a podium finish at the 2023 Eindhoven Marathon in the Netherlands.

Noah Kipkemboi (Kenya): A veteran of the marathon distance. The 31-year-old has competed at more than 10 marathons in his career. He podiumed at the Enschede Marathon earlier this year, with a time of 2:09:06. 

Brian Kipsang (Kenya): Kipsang arrives in Toronto fresh off a personal best at the 2024 Milan Marathon in March, where he placed second in 2:07:56. The 30-year-old has finished in the top five at three of his last four races. 

Abe Gashahun (Ethiopia): Gashahun has the fastest half-marathon personal best in the field of 59:46. He’s had success at shorter distances and cross country, but it hasn’t yet translated to the marathon. The 26-year-old ran 2:08:51 earlier this year in Saudi Arabia.

Sydney Gidabuday (U.S.A.): Former member of Adidas Tinman Elite Track Club in Colorado. Gidabuday made his marathon debut on Canadian soil at the 2023 Ottawa Marathon, where he finished ninth. His PB of 2:14:34 was run at the hilly NYC Marathon in 2023.

Yusuf Nadir (U.S.A.): Personal best of 2:15:27 from the 2023 Grandma’s Marathon in Duluth, Minn. He finished 25th at the U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials in February.

Aidan Reed (U.S.A.): Also made his marathon debut at the 2023 Ottawa Marathon–2:20:23. Reed ran collegiately at Southern Utah University, following in the footsteps of Canadian marathon record holder Cam Levins.

Canadian women’s field

Kate Bazeley (St. John’s, N.L.): The 40-year-old ran her PB of 2:36:35 in Toronto in 2019. Earlier this year, Bazeley represented Team Canada at the World XC Championships in Belgrade, Serbia.

Anne-Marie Comeau (Saint-Ferréol-les-Neiges, Que.): The 2018 Canadian (winter) Olympian ran her marathon best of 2:34:51 in Toronto last year, crossing the line as the second Canadian woman.

Asia Dwyer (Toronto): Dwyer ran her personal best of 2:42:45 at the 2023 Toronto Waterfront Marathon last fall. She told Canadian Running in an interview for the November/December 2024 issue of the print magazine that she is looking to smash her previous best.

Rachel Hannah (Port Elgin, Ont.): Hannah was the top Canadian finisher at the 2024 Ottawa Marathon in May. She won a bronze medal for Canada at the 2015 Pan-American Games in Toronto. She ran her personal best of 2:32:09 was at the 2016 Houston Marathon.

Liza Howard (Toronto): Howard told Canadian Running in an interview that her goal is to reach the podium and run a personal best. Howard ran her current personal best of 2:35:29 at the 2022 Chicago Marathon. She has unofficially broken the Canadian women’s 50K record, twice, in her marathon build for this race.

Erin Mawhinney (Hamilton): The 28-year-old runner will be making her marathon debut in Toronto. She is coached by two-time Canadian Olympian Reid Coolsaet. She broke the tape at the Toronto Waterfront Half Marathon last year, running a PB of 1:13:50.

Melissa Paauwe (Calgary). Paauwe is carrying the pride of Calgary into Toronto. She ran her PB of 2:41:12 at the 2023 Chicago marathon, and finished as the top Canadian.

Leslie Sexton (Markham, Ont.): Sexton returns to Toronto to run her hometown marathon. She said she will be trying to qualify for Worlds in Tokyo next year. She set her PB of 2:28:14 at the 2024 Houston Marathon this year, but missed the Olympic standard by two minutes.

Natasha Wodak: (Vancouver) started her marathon career here in 2013 but has not returned until this year; has never won the championship. Her PB of 2:23:12 from the 2022 Berlin Marathon stands as the current Canadian record.

International women’s field

Waganesh Mekasha (Ethiopia): Has a personal best of 2:22:45  from the 2019 Dubai Marathon. The 32-year-old Ethiopian won the 2023 Ottawa Marathon and finished second in Toronto last fall, with a time of 2:23:12.

Afera Godfay (Ethiopia): Godfay finished third behind compatriots Buze Diriba and Mekasha (see above) last year. She has a personal best of 2:22:41 and has finished in the top five in four of her last five marathons.

Roza Dejere (Ethiopia): The 27-year-old Ethiopian has the fastest personal best in the women’s field (2:18:30). She finished fourth in the women’s marathon at the Tokyo Olympic Games. She comes to Toronto as a threat to the course record of 2:22:16, which was set in 2019.

Meseret Gebre (Ethiopia): Gebre hasn’t raced since Toronto last fall, where she finished seventh in 2:29:54. She set her PB of 2:23:11 to win the Barcelona Marathon in 2022.

Valentina Matieko (Kenya): One of two Kenyan women in the international elite field. Matieko comes to Toronto fresh off a personal best earlier this year at the Paris Marathon in April (2:24:21).

Lydia Simiyu (Kenya): Simiyu ran her PB of 2:25:10 earlier this year at the Rome Marathon. She served a six-month doping suspension in 2022 after she tested positive for chlorthalidone after the Poznan Half Marathon in Poland.

Rediet Daniel (Ethiopia): Two top-five finishes in her three professional marathon starts. The 24-year-old Ethiopian ran her personal best of  2:26:25 at the 2024 Doha Marathon in February.

The TCS Toronto Waterfront Marathon, to be held on Oct. 20, is Canada’s premier running event and the grand finale of the Canada Running Series (CRS). Since 2017, the race has also served as the Athletics Canada marathon championship and Olympic trials.

(10/11/2024) Views: 256 ⚡AMP
by Marley Dickinson

Moh Ahmed withdraws from Houston Half Marathon due to hamstring injury

Moh Ahmed’s debut in the half-marathon will have to wait. He has withdrawn from this Sunday’s Aramco Houston Half Marathon after suffering a hamstring injury in his final tune-up workout.

“I am regretfully withdrawing from the Aramco Houston Half Marathon. In my final tune-up workout on Wednesday, I tweaked my hamstring/hip flexor a bit, such that my coach, Jerry Schumacher, and I felt it would be unwise to line up on Sunday,” said Ahmed in a statement Thursday.

Ahmed’s half-marathon debut was highly anticipated, given his Canadian records in the 5,000m and 10,000m on the track. He is the only Canadian distance runner to have medalled in the men’s 5,000m event at an Olympic Games (Tokyo 2020).

“After a great few months of training, I was really looking forward to testing myself over the streets of Houston against a great field, but it will have to wait until next year,” said Ahmed. Outside of a few local road races and winning the Canadian men’s 10K title last year, he has not raced the 21.1 or 42.2 km distance.

Rory Linkletter will be the lone Canadian athlete in the men’s elite half-marathon field. Linkletter is racing in Houston in preparation for the Sevilla Marathon on Feb. 18, aiming for the Olympic standard of 2:08:10. His personal best of 61:08 was set at this race in 2022 (a Canadian national record at the time). Ljnkletter’s PB is only 50 seconds behind the Canadian half marathon record of 60:18 held by Cam Levins.

Despite Ahmed’s withdrawal, there will still be a large Canadian presence in Houston. Four athletes will be chasing their Olympic dreams in the marathon. Leslie Sexton, 2016 Olympian Lanni Marchant, and Canadian marathon record holder Natasha Wodak will all have their goals on the women’s Olympic standard of 2:26:50, with two spots still open for Paris 2024.

On the men’s side, Tristan Woodfine from Cobden, Ont, returns to the marathon looking to break his personal best of 2:10:51, set three years ago at the London Marathon. The men’s Olympic standard for Paris is 2:08:10.

(01/12/2024) Views: 473 ⚡AMP
by Marley Dickinson

Four Canadian runners to chase Olympic dreams at Houston Marathon

As the 2024 Houston Marathon Weekend approaches, the spotlight is not only on the highly anticipated half-marathon debut of Canada’s Moh Ahmed, but also on the intense competition among four Canadian marathoners aiming to earn the Olympic qualifying standard for the 2024 Paris Olympic Games.

Wodak eyes Olympic standard

Canadian marathon record holder Natasha Wodak leads a strong Canadian contingent in Houston, all chasing the Olympic A standard of 2:26:50. Former national team athletes Leslie Sexton and Lanni Marchant will also be vying for the two available spots on the women’s marathon team.

Wodak holds the fastest Canadian women’s time in the last two years, but her Canadian record of 2:23:12 from the 2022 Berlin Marathon was outside the Olympic qualifying window. Wodak took another shot at achieving the time at the 2023 World Athletics Championships in Budapest, but warm conditions and a tactical race prevented her from earning a spot in Paris (she finished in the top 15, in  2:30:09).

Sexton returns to the marathon after a break from the distance of a year and a half. Sexton ran 2:28 twice in a 10-month period, winning the 2021 Philadelphia Marathon and finishing as the top Canadian at the 2022 World Athletics Championships in Eugene, Ore. ((she finished 13th). With a best of 2:28:35, she would need to shake off almost two minutes to solidify her spot in Paris. But the fast Houston course (which she has raced before) could provide what she needs.

Also returning to the marathon after a long hiatus is 2016 Olympian Lanni Marchant. The London, Ont., native holds a personal best of 2:28:00 from Toronto in 2013, but there are a lot of questions around her fitness, after racing only twice in 2023. Marchant would need a career-best performance to earn her a spot on the Canadian Olympic team for 2024.

Malindi Elmore of Kelowna, B.C., is the only Canadian woman to have achieved the Olympic standard of 2:26:50 at the 2023 Berlin Marathon. Elmore was also the top North American female finisher in 2:23:30, achieving an 80-second personal best.

Ontario’s Tristan Woodfine takes another shot

After thinking he had a spot on the Canadian Olympic team for Tokyo, then having it taken from him in the final week of qualifying by Cam Levins and Athletics Canada, Tristan Woodfine is heading to Houston for another shot at his dream of being on Team Canada for the Olympics. Woodfine’s personal best came on a cold and wet day at the 2020 London Marathon, clocking 2:10:51. Since 2020, he has had his struggles with the marathon distance and beating that mark.

After tough luck with the heat and his stomach at the 2022 Ottawa Marathon, Woodfine switched coaches and spent most of the 2023 season building his speed on the roads. He recorded personal bests of 14:05 for 5K and 29:06 for 10K. Only two Canadian men have ever broken 2:10 in the marathon: Trevor Hofbauer and Levins.

Levins cemented his spot on the Canadian Olympic team for Paris at his record-setting run at the 2023 Tokyo Marathon. To this day, he is the only Canadian marathoner to have run under the men’s Olympic A standard of 2:08:10. (He also did so at the 2022 World Championships.)

How to follow

The 2024 Chevron Houston Marathon is scheduled for Jan. 14. It is one of the fastest marathon courses in North America; in 2020, Elmore set the previous Canadian marathon record of 2:24:50 there. The last Canadian marathoner to win the Houston Marathon was Mississauga’s Peter Fonseca, who ran 2:11:52 for the win in 1995.

(01/09/2024) Views: 517 ⚡AMP
by Marley Dickinson

Natasha Wodak and Moh Ahmed win top spots at Canadian 10K Championships

More than 6,400 runners took part in the 2023 Ottawa 10K, presented by Otto’s Ottawa. The race attracted some of the best professional runners in Canada as well as thousands of participants from across the National Capital Region and the country. Once again this year, Ottawa played host to the Canadian 10K Championships. 

In the women’s category, 41-year-old Natasha Wodak of Vancouver completed the 10K in 32:51, winning the Canadian Championship for the third year in a row. Wodak took an early lead, leaving Leslie Sexton to take 2nd place, in 33:13. Montreal’s Caroline Pomerleau captured 3rd in 33:16.

Mohammed Ahmed took first place in the men’s category, with a time of 28:21. For most of the race, the St. Catherine’s runner ran neck and neck with Cam Levins, of Black Creek, British Columbia. But Ahmed was able to pull away in the final stretch, leaving Levins to take second in a time of 28:39. Jeremy Coughler, of London, Ontario, took third place in 29:31. 

Starting at Ottawa City Hall, the 10K course took runners along the famous Rideau Canal before heading across the Pretoria Bridge to an exciting finish in front of thousands of cheering spectators on Queen Elizabeth Drive. But the heat posed a challenge for many runners, as it was 28 degrees Celsius when the race started. 

 

(05/28/2023) Views: 738 ⚡AMP

Moh Ahmed, Cam Levins to face off at Ottawa 10K

Two of the fastest distance runners in Canadian history will go head-to-head.

Tamarack Ottawa Race Weekend will once again host the Canadian 10K Championships in 2023, and as always, this is an event that no runner or fan will want to miss. Two of the best distance runners in Canadian history, Cam Levins and Moh Ahmed, will headline the men’s race alongside former national champions. And four of the top five women from last year’s championships are returning, making the Ottawa 10K one of the most anticipated races on the 2023 event calendar.

It’s an equally fun and exciting race for non-elites, as the 10K follows a beautiful course through Ottawa, one of Canada’s most beautiful cities. The 2023 Tamarack Ottawa Race Weekend is set for May 27 and 28.

The elite fields

Canadian Olympic marathoner Dylan Wykes has been the elite athlete co-ordinator at Run Ottawa for four years, but due to the pandemic, the 2023 race weekend will mark only the second in-person edition of the event he has worked on since taking over the role in early 2020. Wykes says this year’s race will be a special one, as “the best 10K runners in the country will be hitting the streets of Ottawa.”

Headlining the event are Levins and Ahmed, neither of whom have ever competed at Ottawa Race Weekend. Ahmed, a 2020 Olympic medallist in the 5,000m, holds the Canadian record for 10,000m (26:34.14 on the track), but has not yet raced on the roads in his professional career. Ahmed is amped about the opportunity to kick off his 2023 season at the Ottawa 10K and make his road-racing debut.

Levins told race organizers he’s eager to check the Ottawa 10K off his bucket list. “The opportunity to run in such a competitive field in Canada is really great,” Levins said. “Ottawa has always been an event at which I’ve wanted to race.” Joining Ahmed and Levins in the men’s field are 2:10 marathoner Tristan Woodfine, U Sports cross-country champion Max Turek, Canadian cross-country champion Connor Black and others. 

The women’s field is equally stacked, with four of the top five women from the 2022 Ottawa 10K returning to this year’s championship race. Natasha Wodak, who won last year’s race, will not be back to defend her title, but second-place Leslie Sexton, third-place Sasha Gollish, fourth-place Emily Setlack and fifth-place Cleo Boyd are all in the lineup and ready to fight for the win. “It’s a really great group of women,” Wykes says, pointing out that the field spans more than 15 years in age. “All these women have great stories and are an inspiration. 

“This is a great opportunity for fans of the sport to see [these athletes] in action,” Wykes continues, pointing to Ahmed and Levins, who headline the men’s 10K field. “Levins is performing incredibly well right now, as well as any Canadian ever has on the roads at the world level, so it’s an exciting opportunity for fans of the sport to get to see him compete on home soil.”

Wykes adds that the 10K isn’t the only spectacle for fans who will be in Ottawa on May 27 and 28. “The entire weekend is a great opportunity to see some of the world’s best runners,” he says. “Our marathon is a World Athletics Elite Label event and will have athletes from three of the best marathoning nations in the world: Ethiopia, Kenya and Japan.” 

The race

For runners who aren’t looking to go sub-30 at the Ottawa 10K, this is still a great race. One detail Wykes points out that makes it unique is the race’s start time. “I think it is special because it is an evening race,” he says. “Most road races are held in the morning, so there is definitely a bit of a different feel to things when the race is in the evening.” 

Wykes says fans are “a bit rowdier” than they might be at the crack of dawn, and he says there’s “a bit more of a party atmosphere.” This all adds up to a great night of adrenaline, fast racing and post-race fun. 

The race starts on Elgin Street, not far from Parliament Hill, and takes runners down to the Rideau Canal. “Elgin Street is lined with patios and restaurants,” Wykes says, so there are plenty of people to cheer runners on as they kick off the race. Once at the Rideau Canal, runners follow the water all the way to Dows Lake, then cross a bridge and head for the finish on the other side.

“The final mile of the race is packed with fans along the Pretoria Bridge and Colonel By Drive,” Wykes says. “I’m getting excited now, just thinking about it.” 

(05/11/2023) Views: 812 ⚡AMP

Leslie Sexton flies to second straight Vancouver Sun Run crown

A star-studded lineup of runners raced the 2023 Vancouver Sun Run on Sunday, producing a pair of exciting 10K races won by John Gay and Leslie Sexton. Gay won the men’s race in a tight battle with 2019 Sun Run champion Justin Kent, crossing the line in 29:40. Sexton successfully defended her title from 2022, winning in 32:22. The race was a massive success, as more than 30,000 runners took to the wet and rainy streets of Vancouver to test their limits. 

Two in a row for Sexton 

Sexton won the 2022 Vancouver Sun Run in 32:27, and this year she not only repeated as champion, but also improved on her previous winning time by 15 seconds. As she told the Vancouver Sun after the race, “I tend to run well in the rain. I saw the forecast and I knew this was a strength for me, and I’m just going to roll with it.” 

Sexton ran near identical splits over the two halves of the race, running the first 5 km in 16:12 and the second in 16:10. This even pacing and negative split helped her catch Olympic marathoner Malindi Elmore, who got out to a hot start, passing through the 5 km checkpoint in 16:04. Over the closing 5 km, Sexton didn’t panic or force things as she attempted to draw Elmore back in, instead sticking to a regular pace and trusting in her fitness. 

“Last year, I went out too fast,” Sexton told the Sun. “The course really chewed me up over the second half [in 2022] and, this year, I just let the top three go and they gapped me a bit. I just worked my way past people as it went on.” By 7 km, Sexton had caught Elmore, and she made her passing move on a slight uphill around a kilometre later. 

Sexton continued to pull away in the final couple of kilometres, ultimately crossing the line in 32:22, 13 seconds in front of Elmore. Cleo Boyd rounded out the podium with a final time of 32:55. 

 

(04/19/2023) Views: 862 ⚡AMP
by Running Magazine

Canadian distance champ Leslie Sexton’s chocolate chip cookies

When Canadian marathon record-holder Natasha Wodak is craving a sweet treat, she only has to look as far as fellow national teammate Leslie Sexton. “Leslie makes the best chocolate chip cookies ever!” Wodak says. Even the most dedicated athletes’ meal plan should include some food that’s pure delight, and these bakery-style cookies nail that category.

Sexton suggests making a double batch and freezing most of the dough. “That was I can pop four to six in the oven and have fresh, warm cookies every few days,” she says. Sexton advises following the recipe closely. “I will usually use dark chocolate chunks to go with the regular semi-sweet chocolate chips. Chilling the dough for 24 hours is key, don’t skip that step,” she adds.

Leslie Sexton’s incredible chocolate chip cookies

(makes 26 cookies)

Ingredients3 cups all-purpose flour1 tsp baking soda1 tsp fine sea salt2 sticks unsalted butter, at room temp.1/2 cup granulated sugar1 1/4 cups lightly packed brown sugar2 tsp vanilla2 large eggs at room temp.2 cups semisweet chocolate chips

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 F (177 C).

In a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking soda and salt.

In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat the butter, granulated sugar, and brown sugar until creamy, about 2 minutes. Add vanilla and eggs. Gradually beat in flour mixture. Stir in the chocolate chips (and chocolate chunks, if using).

Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 24 hours but no more than 72 hours. This allows the dough to “marinate” and makes the cookies thicker, chewier, and more flavorful. Let dough sit at room temperature just until it is soft enough to scoop.

Divide the dough into balls using a large cookie scoop and drop onto prepared baking sheets.

Bake for 11–13 minutes, or until golden brown. Cool for five minutes before removing to wire racks to cool completely.

(10/20/2022) Views: 973 ⚡AMP
by Keeley Milne

Ben Flanagan and Leslie Sexton will defend Canadian 10k titles in Ottawa on May 28th

Ben Flanagan and Leslie Sexton will now defend their 2021 crowns on May 28th, 2022, at the Ottawa 10k presented by Otto’s Ottawa.

Owing to COVID restrictions – which delayed in-person racing – the Athletics Canada Canadian Championships were held in October 2021 in Toronto rather than in Ottawa last May. Flanagan raced to a 28:42 victory on the waterfront and Sexton, although crossing the line second on the day, was also crowned national champion.

Scottish guest runner Sarah Inglis finished first but was ineligible for the prize money and the title. Sexton, who has relocated to Vancouver following several years in Kingston, Ontario, ran a personal best of 32:04. A month later she significantly lowered her best marathon time to 2:28:35 when she won the Philadelphia Marathon.

This time around Flanagan will face stiff competition from not only Luc Bruchet, a two-time Canadian Olympian at 5,000m, but also from Rory Linkletter, who is having a stellar season.

After breaking the Canadian Half Marathon record with a 1:01:08 clocking in Houston on January 16th – and finishing 20 seconds ahead of Flanagan – Linkletter ran 28:43 at the Cooper River Ridge Run 10k on April 2nd. In between those fine performances, he confirmed he has the speed to match Flanagan with an indoor 3,000m personal best of 7:49.13. That was recorded in Louisville, Kentucky on February 12th.

Linkletter, who lives and trains in Flagstaff, Arizona, parted ways with Hoka’s Northern Arizona Elite group last December to train with American marathon great Ryan Hall.

Bruchet was runner-up in that 2021 Toronto championship race with a time of 28:49. On April 24th, the 31-year-old from Vancouver set a new personal best of 28:29 in winning the Vancouver Sun Run 10k, which is a result that should cause Flanagan some concern.

Complicating his title defense a little further, Flanagan is coming back from six weeks of rehabilitation on a broken toe. But with a month of solid running, he surprised many by successfully completing a 1,500m/5,000m double at the Jesse Owens Track Classic in Ohio. He ran 3:44.98 and 14:10.07 with just ninety minutes between. 

(05/19/2022) Views: 1,170 ⚡AMP
by Christopher Kelsall

BMO Vancouver Marathon delayed by ‘suspicious device’ on course

Vancouver’s 50th BMO Marathon got off to a rocky start Sunday morning when the event was delayed due to a suspicious device found along the course near Science World. CTV News reports that Vancouver police feel “the device was ‘strategically placed’ to disrupt the BMO Vancouver Marathon Sunday morning, but has been ‘rendered inert.'” Due to the incident, the race started an hour behind schedule.

Police think the device, which was spotted just after 5 a.m. by a volunteer, was planted to cause panic and disrupt the event. 

Thankfully, it was a false alarm and the 18,500 runners were able to race safely. 

In elite results, Chris Balestrini took the win for the men in 2:23:56. On the women’s side, 2020 Olympian Dayna Pidhoresky won in a new course record of 2:34:30, surpassing Kim Doerksen’s 2:37:00 from 2014. Also under the former record was 2016 Olympian Lanni Marchant, who was second in 2:36:42. Post-race, Pidhoresky said, “It was a bit of a rollercoaster, mentally. Lanni and I were together for most of the first half of the race. She’s a tough competitor, so in no way did I ever think that I had it in the bag. I was working hard the whole time.”

Of his win, Balestrini mentioned the incredible views: “It’s so scenic and so fun. Going along the seawall is just amazing.”

In the half-marathon, Justin Kent and Olympian Ben Preisner crossed the finish line together in 1:04:54. Preisner, who was the top Canadian performer in the men’s marathon in Tokyo, has run consistently well since his first Games.

Post-race, Kent said he’s thrilled to see the running community back together: “It’s always a top-notch event. I heard that there are 3,000 volunteers–it’s amazing–we are super appreciative just to be here.”

In the women’s race, 2:28 marathoner Leslie Sexton continued her winning streak, taking the title in 1:14:56. Sexton, who has currently run the fastest marathon time within the qualifying period, has her eye on the World Championships marathon this summer. Olympian Natasha Wodak was also entered in the half on Sunday, but this time in the role of pacer. She helped her friend Julie Pelly to a personal best of 1:30.

(05/03/2022) Views: 1,575 ⚡AMP

Fast Fields Set For The Publix Atlanta Half-Marathon

After a special pandemic edition in 2021 at Atlanta Motor Speedway, the Publix Atlanta Half-Marathon returns to city streets for the 2022 edition on Sunday, February 27.  The race, part of the Publix Atlanta Marathon Weekend organized by the Atlanta Track Club (ATC), will feature an elite field, a $17,000 prize money purse, and a $5,000 bonus pool for exceeding the fastest times ever run in the state of Georgia (1:08:29 for women and 1:03:59 for men).

Leading the women’s elite field will be Kenya’s Viola Cheptoo who, when she competed as a middle distance runner for Florida State University in the NCAA system, went by “Viola Lagat.”  The younger sister of two-time Olympic medalist Bernard Lagat will be running her first race since her dramatic marathon debut at the TCS New York City Marathon last November where she finished a close second to compatriot and Olympic champion Peres Jepchirchir.  Her time of 2:22:44 was the third-fastest time in race history.  She’ll be incorporating the Publix Atlanta Half-Marathon into her Boston Marathon training.

“I am looking forward to it,” said Cheptoo who has never been to Atlanta before.  “I want to do well and build a relationship with the community, as I am aware of all the good work done by Atlanta Track Club.”

Cheptoo, who has a half-marathon best of 1:06:47, will face another strong Kenyan, Dorcas Tuitoek, who has run similarly fast: 1:06:33.  These two woman have an excellent chance of bettering the state record which was set by 2021 Olympic Marathon bronze medalist Molly Seidel at last year’s race.

North American athletes will also be represented on the women’s side, including Dakotah Lindwurm of Minnesota Distance Elite (1:09:36 PB), Maegan Krifchin of the Atlanta Track Club (1:09:51), and Canadian Lanni Marchant (1:10:47) a 2016 Olympian and the 2021 Honolulu Marathon champion.

The top entrants on the men’s side are also from Kenya, and both have broken 60 minutes for the half-marathon.  Benard Ngeno (59:07 PB) and Geoffrey Koech (59:36) are the fastest men in the field.  The top North Americans will be Canadian record holder Rory Linkletter (1:01:08 PB), Jonas Hampton of Newtonville, Mass. (1:03:57), and Matthew McDonald of the Boston Athletic Association High Performance team (1:04:48).  McDonald, the tenth place finisher at the 2020 USA Olympic Trials Marathon, formerly trained with the ATC at Georgia Tech.  He now works at MIT in Cambridge, Mass.

The complete elite fields are below with personal best times:

Dorcas Tuitoek, KEN, 1:06:41Viola Cheptoo, KEN, 1:06:47Mary Munanu, KEN, 1:07:54Tsige Haileslase, ETH, 1:08:30Daisy Kimeli, KEN, 1:08:34Dakotah Lindwurm, USA, 1:09:36Maegan Krifchin, USA, 1:09:51Ludwina Chepngetich, KEN, 1:10:34Lanni Marchant, CAN, 1:10:47Leslie Sexton, CAN, 1:11:21Bridget Lyons Belyeu, USA, 1:12:24Grace Kahura, KEN, 1:12:49Janel Blanchett, USA, 1:13:43Anne-Marie Comeau, CAN, 1:14:09Joanna Stephens, USA, 1:14:23

Benard Ngeno, KEN, 59:07Geoffrey Koech, KEN, 59:36Raymond Magut, KEN, 1:00:00Bayelign Teshager, ETH, 1:00:30Bethwell Yegon, KEN, 1:00:57Rory Linkletter, CAN, 1:01:08Mike Cheshire, KEN, 1:03:45Jonas Hampton, USA, 1:03:57Matt McDonald, USA, 1:04:48Chris May, USA, 1:04:50Paul Hogan, USA, 2:15:51 (Marathon)

(02/17/2022) Views: 1,533 ⚡AMP
by David Monti

Ben Preisner and Emebet Anteneh, won the Boxing Day 10 Miler, beating the reigning champions Matt Hughes and Robyn Mildren.

The 99th annual Boxing Day 10 and 4 Miler took place on Thursday morning in Hamilton, Ont. The race draws huge crowds of runners to compete in an off-distance road race. Among the runners were Olympians, Canadian record holders and national champions.

This year saw two new victors in the men’s and women’s races, Ben Preisner and Emebet Anteneh, who beat reigning champions Matt Hughes and Robyn Mildren.

Preisner caught Canadians attention when he won the 2019 Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Half-Marathon. There he ran a two-minute personal best, hitting 1:03:02 for the half-marathon win. He won Thursday’s 10 miler in 48:18, just 13 seconds off of Hughes’ course record. Second place went to ACXC (national cross-country) champion Mike Tate (48:47) and third place to the Canadian steeplechase record holder Hughes (49:21).

In the women’s race, Emebet Anteneh won in 55:18, almost a full minute ahead of the second place finisher. Anteneh has been a force on the Canadian roads in 2019. She ran a 1:10:28 at the Edmonton Half-Marathon and a 16:04 5K in the fall. Anteneh comes from a track background, owning an extremely impressive 14:43.29 5,000m personal best.

Second place in the women’s race went to Sanna Mustonen (56:04) and third place to Leslie Sexton (56:19).

(12/27/2019) Views: 1,872 ⚡AMP
by Madeleine Kelly

Leslie Sexton has joined the lineup at this year’s Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon

Defending Canadian champion Leslie Sexton has officially joined the lineup at this year’s Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon on October 21. Sexton is favoured to win again, as the strongest Canadian female entry. Her 2017 time was 2:35:47. Sexton stands to win $5,000 if she runs faster than 2:35:00, and she has stated her goal is to exceed her personal best, which is 2:33:33 (achieved on the Scotiabank course in 2015). Ultimately she would like to go sub-2:30 and join the likes of Lanni Marchant (Canadian record-holder, at 2:28), Krista DuChene (who is also running Scotiabank this year), Silvia Ruegger, Jaqueline Gareau and Lioudmila Kortchaguina. (08/15/2018) Views: 1,820 ⚡AMP