By Paul Gains
Dayna Pidhoresky hopes third time will prove lucky when she contests the Banque Scotia 21k de Montreal on Sunday April 23rd.
On two previous occasions the now 30-year old Tecumseh, Ontario native has finished second in the race – a Canada Running Series event. This time she has additional motivation as she approaches the day: a victory would take her 2017 season record to a perfect 3-0.
Pidhoresky moved west to Vancouver a little over two years ago with her boyfriend/coach Josh Seifarth. They were married in August 2015. The change has proven advantageous.
On March 18th of this year she won the St. Patrick’s Day 5km Run in her new hometown before earning an impressive win at the Around the Bay 30km race in Hamilton, her third at this prestigious race. There she recorded a personal best time of 1:47:27. That’s three and a half minutes faster than she has ever run on that hilly course – a fair indication she has made significant progress.
Familiarity with the Montreal 21km course, which traverses Parc Jean Drapeau on scenic Ile Notre Dame and Ile Sainte-Helene, should also count for something.
Athletics Canada has graciously altered the qualifying period for the 2018 World Half Marathon Championships to include Banque Scotia 21k de Montreal. A trip to Valencia, Spain next March would be another fine international competition for Pidhoresky.
But it is a berth on Canada’s 2017 IAAF World Championship marathon team which remains the year’s primary goal and she is focusing on achieving this at the Scotiabank Ottawa Marathon (May 28th). Hence she is looking for a quick time in Montreal to confirm she is on the right track.
“I definitely don’t think I would be happy with anything other than under 1 hour 14 minutes,” she reveals. “I would be satisfied but I want more than that. It is so hard to know. Everything has to align on the day. I hope that happens.”
Early on, Pidhoresky showed impressive marathon potential before she encountered injury and other health problems. At the 2011 Niagara Falls Half Marathon she ran 1:11:46 making her the fourth fastest Canadian woman ever. But then she suffered a couple of stress fractures of the sacrum, the most recent last autumn.
She finally made her marathon debut at the 2016 Houston Marathon but dropped out after suffering gastrointestinal problems. Then came the 2016 Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon, but in the buildup to the race she felt something wasn’t quite right. Under duress she finished in 2:40:38 receiving a Canadian Championship bronze medal. Afterwards, she was diagnosed with her second sacral fracture. Her fortunes appear on the rise now.
Although she has represented Canada in the 2011 Chiba Ekiden, a team road race event, earning a place on her first major championship team would be a major step.
“I am definitely going into it trying to make that world team,” she says of the Ottawa Marathon. “I think that is the last day you can qualify. So going into it I will know exactly what I have to do. A part of me wants to run really fast, but I think the decision will be to run safely to get that qualifying time. That’s the goal. Then hopefully I will be able to test my fitness later in the year.”
Which brings her back to the importance of the Montreal 21k. Predictably she is cautious about her intentions knowing that she will, in all likelihood, continue training through the race to ensure peak fitness for the marathon.
“It is still over a month out from Ottawa so I don’t think I will be running on ‘tapered’ legs,” she explains. “Hopefully, I feel good because it’s not fun to run to feel really fatigued. I definitely want to run fast. I would love to PB.
“I know that course is fast, if the weather conditions are quite right. It can get windy and I have experienced that course when it’s windy. I want to run fast but I know it’s possible that I won’t be feeling super peppy. I will know in the first five or ten km if it’s going to be a good day or not.”
Should Pidhoresky falter, there are several Quebecers only too happy to give chase. They include Arianne Raby who ran the 5k distance at the event a year ago but has also run the marathon in 2:48:54, Bianca Premont who won Montreal 21k in 2015, and Sandra McLean. Premont also finished 3rd in the Banque Scotia 21k de Montreal a year ago and has a best marathon time of 2:48:29.
Pidhoresky’s confidence has been boosted lately with some exceptional training weeks where she has gone over 150 kilometres in training volume. That includes a weekly rest day during which she might swim or bike to keep stress off her legs. During one of her intervals sessions (repeated hard one kilometre runs) two weeks ago she was joined by Canadian Olympian Natasha Wodak for part of her workout.
The ultimate proof of fitness, however, will come April 23rd in Parc Jean Drapeau.
The men’s race will be a tight one with half a dozen men owning 10k bests of around 30:30 which bodes well for a good battle. No doubt someone will emerge and draw the spotlight upon himself.
-30-
For More Information and to Register for Banque Scotia 21k de Montreal:
www.21kdemontreal.com
Dayna Pidhoresky vise la victoire au Banque Scotia 21k de Montréal
Par Paul Gains
Dayna Pidhoresky espère que la troisième fois sera la bonne au Banque Scotia 21k de Montréal, le dimanche 23 avril prochain.
En effet, l’athlète de 30 ans native de Tecumseh, en Ontario, a déjà obtenu deux secondes places lors de cette course du Circuit du Canada. Cette fois, elle a une source de motivation additionnelle à l’approche du jour J : la victoire lui donnerait une fiche parfaite de 3-0 pour la saison 2017.
Il y a un peu plus de deux ans, Pidhoresky déménage à Vancouver avec son conjoint et entraîneur, Josh Seifarth, qu’elle épouse en août 2015. Ce déménagement s’avère profitable.
Le 18 mars dernier, Pidhoresky remporte le 5 km de la Saint-Patrick dans sa ville d’adoption. Elle signe ensuite une victoire impressionnante pour décrocher un troisième titre au prestigieux 30 km Around the Bay, à Hamilton. Elle enregistre alors un record personnel de 1:47:27 – abaissant de trois minutes et demie son meilleur temps sur ce parcours vallonné –, signe qu’elle a fait des progrès appréciables.
À Montréal, sa connaissance du parcours de 21 km, qui traverse le parc Jean-Drapeau sur les magnifiques îles Notre-Dame et Sainte-Hélène, devrait également l’avantager.
Athlétisme Canada a gentiment accepté de modifier la période de qualification aux Championnats du monde de demi-marathon 2018 pour inclure le Banque Scotia 21k de Montréal. Un voyage à Valence, en Espagne, en mars prochain serait une autre belle occasion pour Pidhoresky de compétitionner à l’étranger.
Or le but ultime de l’athlète demeure l’obtention d’une place dans l’équipe canadienne de marathon en vue des Championnats du monde 2017 de l’IAAF, place que Pidhoresky compte obtenir au Marathon d’Ottawa Banque Scotia (28 mai). Elle veut donc réaliser un bon chrono à Montréal pour confirmer qu’elle est sur la bonne voie.
« C’est sûr que je veux terminer en moins de 1 heure 14 minutes, révèle l’athlète. Ce serait un chrono satisfaisant, mais j’aimerais courir encore plus vite. Sauf qu’on ne sait jamais d’avance; il faut que tout se passe bien ce jour-là. Je croise les doigts. »
Dès ses débuts, Pidhoresky présente un potentiel impressionnant pour le marathon avant d’être ralentie par des blessures et d’autres problèmes de santé. En 2011, elle court le demi-marathon de Niagara Falls en 1:11:46, le quatrième meilleur temps par une coureuse canadienne. Or elle subit par la suite deux fractures de fatigue au sacrum, dont une pas plus tard que l’automne dernier.
Elle court finalement son premier marathon à Houston, en 2016, mais doit abandonner en raison de problèmes gastrointestinaux. Puis, lors de sa préparation au Marathon Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront 2016, elle sent que quelque chose ne va pas. Elle réussit de peine et de misère à terminer la course en 2:40:38, temps qui lui vaut une médaille de bronze aux Championnats canadiens. C’est alors qu’on lui diagnostique une deuxième fracture du sacrum. Aujourd’hui, on dirait que la vie lui sourit enfin.
Bien que Pidhoresky ait représenté le Canada au Chiba Ekiden 2011, une course sur route par équipe, participer à un premier championnat majeur serait pour elle un jalon important.
« C’est certain que mon but sera d’obtenir une place aux mondiaux, dit-elle à propos du Marathon d’Ottawa. Je pense que c’est le dernier jour pour se qualifier; je vais donc savoir exactement ce que je dois faire. Une partie de moi voudra courir vraiment vite, mais je crois que le plus sage serait d’être prudente pour obtenir le temps de qualification. C’est ça l’objectif. Avec un peu de chance, je pourrai tester ma condition physique plus tard cette année. »
D’où l’importance du 21k de Montréal. Sans surprise, Pidhoresky se montre prudente quant à ses intentions : selon toute probabilité, cette course fait partie de son entraînement pour arriver à Ottawa au sommet de sa forme.
« Comme nous serons à plus d’un mois d’Ottawa, je ne crois pas que je vais devoir ménager mes jambes, explique-t-elle. J’espère me sentir bien, car ce n’est pas agréable de courir en étant très fatiguée. C’est sûr que je veux courir vite; j’aimerais beaucoup battre mon record personnel. »
« Je sais que c’est un parcours rapide quand la météo est favorable. Ça peut devenir venteux; je l’ai déjà vécu. Je veux courir vite, mais je sais que c’est possible que je ne sois pas en super forme. Je saurai après cinq ou dix kilomètres si c’est une bonne journée ou non. »
Si les choses tournent mal pour Pidhoresky, plusieurs Québécoises pourraient bien la rattraper. On n’a qu’à penser à Arianne Raby, qui a fait le 5k l’an dernier mais a déjà couru un marathon en 2:48:54; Bianca Prémont, gagnante du 21k de Montréal en 2015; et Sandra McLean. Prémont, qui a terminé troisième au Banque Scotia 21k de Montréal l’an dernier, a couru son meilleur marathon en 2:48:29.
Pidhoresky est particulièrement confiante ces jours-ci, elle qui vient de connaître des semaines d’entraînement exceptionnelles où elle a couru plus de 150 kilomètres. Elle se garde toutefois un jour de repos hebdomadaire où elle fait parfois de la natation ou du vélo pour moins solliciter ses jambes. Lors d’une séance d’entraînement par intervalles (série de courses d’un kilomètre très intenses) il y a deux semaines, l’athlète olympique canadienne Natasha Wodak s’est même jointe à elle pendant quelque temps.
Mais le moment de vérité sera le 23 avril au parc Jean-Drapeau.
Chez les hommes, on peut s’attendre à une course serrée : une demi-douzaine de concurrents ont un record personnel sur 10 km d’environ 30:30. Ce sera chaudement disputé, mais quelqu’un réussira sans doute à se détacher du lot pour remporter les grands honneurs.
– 30 –
Pour en savoir plus ou s’inscrire au Banque Scotia 21k de Montréal :
www.21kdemontreal.com
Leslie Sexton –
Lanni Marchant –
Natasha Wodak –
Rachel Cliff –
Geoff Martinson –
Dylan Wykes –
Kevin Coffey –
Theo Hunt –
The summerlike conditions showed one of the world’s most-scenic half marathons at its best, but led to tactical races up front. It was 19c for the 7:30am start of the “Scotia Half” start at the University of British Columbia at 7:30am. A group of 4 immediately broke away from the field, led by Canada’s 2012 Olympic marathoner Dylan Wykes, with Kangogo, Lakefield, Ontario’s Thomas Toth and Tristan Woodfine from Guelph’s Speed River TFC tucked in behind. Two initial three-minute kilometres got rid of Woodfine who drifted back on tired legs, and the pace slowed to consistent 3:10s as Wykes kept things moving along. Toth, who had already put in over 200 kilometres this week as he prepares to represent Canada in the IAAF World Championships marathon in London in August, was gone by 8k (24:51). It then turned into a thoroughly absorbing cat and mouse contest between two wily veterans. Kangogo had already won the event an impressive 5 times, Wykes once in 2014 (with Kangogo 2nd). The pair continued down through Spanish Banks, Jericho Beach, Point Grey and into Kitsilano with Wykes doing all the leading, and Kangogo in his footsteps behind. 10k was passed in 30:47 and 15k in 46:33 before Kangogo moved out to test Wykes’ race fitness around Kits Point at 17k. At 18k, going onto the challenging uphill over Burrard Bridge, the Albertan made his signature, decisive move that has given him so many victories on the course and it was over quickly. “My training has been coming along really nicely,” Kangogo said. “I was happy with my preparation and I planned to make my move at 18k on the bridge. I had won the Canadian Half marathon Championships 3 weeks ago in Calgary and I was ready. I love this race and am glad to come back anytime.” Despite dropping off to finish 18 seconds back (65:53) Wykes was also pleased with his performance. After battling injuries for 4 years and starting a family, he ran a steady, controlled effort. “It’s great to be back racing,” he said. “Right now I’ve still only got one gear, but watch out for me in the Fall!” Toth crossed the line a distant third in 68:02, with Woodfine another minute back (69:03).
The women’s race produced a surprise winner in Lyndsay Tessier from Toronto’s Black Lungs club, ahead of strong pre-race favourite Dayna Pidhoresky (78:10) of Vancouver. Pidhoresky was coming off a breakthrough performance at the Scotiabank Ottawa Marathon just 4 weeks ago – a PB of 2:36:08 that also earned her a place on the Canadian team to the World Championships. “It was tough out there,” she said. “It was hot. The plan was to do a tempo workout and I thought that might be good enough to win today, but it wasn’t. Lyndsay really deserved to win. I’ve only had a couple of workouts since Ottawa, and I was worried if I pushed too hard it might set me back, and I’d miss some important training for London.” Pidhoresky got off to her typical quick start and was well clear at 3k which she passed in 10:02. But Tessier remained steady, gradually hauling her in. Tessier caught up around 8k, and the pair battled back and forth until 13k when Tessier made the move, to eventually win by over a minute. “Early on I just tried to keep the green shorts in sight,” said Tessier. “I’m not good on downhills, and Dayna got away from me on the downhill from 8k to 9k, but I caught up to her again by 10k. I do much better on the uphills and I moved away on the rise from Jericho at 13k. Burrard Street bridge was really a throat punch at the end but once I got over it I just held on.” Washington State’s Courtney Olsen was 3rd in 80:47.
Introducing our Scotiabank Vancouver Half-Marathon & 5k Elite Field.
Natasha LaBeaud Anzures:
Dayna Pidhoresky:
Kevin Coffey:
Dylan Wykes:
