Running News Daily

Six of Canada’s fastest women are set to race United Airlines NYC half

March 15 is the United Airlines NYC Half-Marathon and six of Canada’s fastest women are set to race. Natasha Wodak, Krista DuChene, Kinsey Middleton, Jen Moroz, Melanie Myrand and Dayna Pidhoresky will all be lining up.

Canada is in the midst of a distance running renaissance that’s showing no signs of slowing down, and these women have played a major part in that. Wodak holds that fastest personal best of the Canadians. She ran a Canadian record in Houston a few weeks ago, becoming the first Canadian women to run under 1:10:00 for the half.

Her record of 1:09:41 stood for three weeks before it was broken by Andrea Seccafien, the current record holder, by two seconds.

DuChene is coming off her strongest year since 2015, running a 2:32:27 to win the master’s division at the 2019 Berlin Marathon. Middleton had a tough day at STWM in October but her 1:12:15 from Houston shows that she’s ready for a strong spring racing season. Myrand hasn’t put up a result since the World Championship marathon in Doha last September, so it’ll be interesting to see where she’s at. Her current personal best is a 1:15:50, a time she’ll likely lower.

Pidhoresky hasn’t touched her half-marathon personal best since the Niagara Falls half-marathon in 2011. Her 1:11:46 is sure to get broken, especially considering her Olympic qualifying marathon from STWM.

(02/20/2020) Views: 1,639 ⚡AMP
by Madeleine Kelly

Paul Chelimo qualifies for World Championship 5,000m final, who won without a shoe

In Friday’s World Championship 5,000m, American and Olympic 5,000m medallist Paul Chelimo lost his shoe in the heats but still managed to win his section and qualify with the leading time for the final on Monday.

Chelimo was clipped on lap seven of 12.5. He reportedly has several blisters, but should be fine to compete come Monday. After his cool down, he said he plans to go and find his shoe.

Chelimo ran a strong race and managed to remain on the pack despite multiple pace and lead changes during the 13 minute race. Canada’s Justyn Knight and Moh Ahmed are also both through to Monday’s final. Both Knight and Ahmed were 2017 World Championships 5,000m finalists and are poised to be serious contenders.

Knight has run a massive personal best this year, hitting 13:09 in the same race that Ahmed became the first Canadian to run under 13:00 minutes for the 5,000m.

After one day of track action, team Canada is has sent an athlete to the semi-final in every event with qualifiers. Gen Lalonde has qualified for the 3,000m steeplechase final on Monday, Lindsey Butterworth qualified for the 800m semi-finals, Andre De Grasse and Aaron Brown are both through to the 100m semi-final and now Ahmed and Knight are through in the 5,000m.

Tonight is the first final of the event with three Canadian women running the marathon at 4:59 p.m. EDT. Sasha Gollish, Melanie Myrand and Lyndsay Tessier are all lining up for what will likely be the hottest marathon of their lives this evening. The temperature at the start of the marathon is estimated at upwards of 40 degrees celsius.

(09/28/2019) Views: 1,787 ⚡AMP
by Madeleine Kelly

Canadian Krista DuChene is feeling good and excited for her first Berlin Marathon

Krista DuChene raced a lot this past spring. Her goal was Boston, but after a disappointing race she reconsidered her spring plans to make room for the Ottawa Marathon, where she ran a season’s best of 2:38:46. On Sunday, the runner will race Berlin for the first time.

DuChene says she’s coming off what might be her best marathon build to date. “This marathon build has perhaps been one of my best.

I entered with a strong base from my spring training and two marathons, so it was about getting in the quality training without a big emphasis on high mileage. During some peak training weeks in August, I was able to rest a lot, as we spent time at our cabin.

I also continued to keep my one weekly complete rest day in my routine. I did most of my interval training on the track and a paved road with some rollers, which I believe helped with both speed and strength.”

When asked about who she’s most excited to watch at the upcoming World Championships, DuChene says obviously her marathon ladies (Melanie Myrand, Lyndsay Tessier and Sasha Gollish) but also pole vaulter Alysha Newman, who has had a killer 2019.

“My daughter and I were able to watch Alysha when she competed in the pole vault in Guelph [at the Speed River Infero] earlier this year. That is both a fun and fascinating event to watch, and something I could never do, given my fear of heights. She keeps breaking her own Canadian record, so obviously she’s having a great year with potential to be on the podium.”

This Sunday, DuChene’s main objective is to enjoy the race, but she says that Olympic standard also isn’t out of the question. “I knew that if I ever did Berlin, it would be significant.

Travelling the distance and being away from my family for nearly a week is a big commitment. Obviously hitting the 2:29:30 Olympic standard would be ideal, but truly I’m just enjoying getting the most out of myself while having fun without any pressure.

I’ll run within my capabilities, trusting the process that got me there, and go by feel.” The race starts at 3:15 a.m. EDT on Sunday morning.

(09/25/2019) Views: 1,815 ⚡AMP
by Madeleine Kelly

Strong elite women´s field is set to run the Chicago Marathon this weekend

American elite’s Gwen Jorgensen and Alexis Pappas will both run this year’s Chicago Marathon.  While Jorgensen has run a marathon before (after deciding to retire as a triathlete), this will be her first marathon since committing to professional running full-time. Jorgensen is the 2016 Olympic triathlon gold medallist. Pappas is a former track runner who competed at the 2016 Olympics in the 10,000m, running for Greece. She’s a Dartmouth and Oregon alumna with a creative side. The runner directed the film Tracktown with her husband Jeremy Teicher, and helped cover the 2018 winter Olympics with comedian Nick Kroll. Pappas is reportedly hoping to run the marathon at the 2020 Olympics for Greece. Roza Dereje of Ethiopia has the fastest incoming women’s seed time, having run a 2:19:17 in Dubai this January. At only 21 years old, Dereje has already made a strong mark on the road running scene. The second-fastest entry is Florence Kiplagat of Kenya. Kiplagat’s personal best is from the 2011 Berlin marathon, and she hasn’t come close to it since the 2014 London marathon. The veteran’s most recent time in the event is a 2:26:25 from the 2017 London marathon. Birhane Dibaba, who comes in third, broke the 2:20 barrier at the 2018 Tokyo marathon, running 2:19:51 to take the win. Dibaba will surely challenge Dejere this weekend. Dayna Pidhoresky and Melanie Myrand are the only two Canadians on the Chicago elite women’s list. Pidhoresky, the Vancouver native has run several half-marathons this summer, along with a 10K. She broke the tape at the Scotiabank Vancouver half-marathon in June, running 1:13:04. Her marathon personal best is 2:36:08. Myrand of Lachine, Que. is a nurse practitioner in primary care who decided to give this running thing a chance after a breakthrough in 2016. Her personal best is 2:39:07 from the 2017 Scotiabank Waterfront marathon in Toronto. (10/02/2018) Views: 1,764 ⚡AMP