A sold-out crowd of five thousand runners will descend upon Alberta’s Legislature grounds (‘The Ledge’) July 22nd for the inaugural running of the Edmonton 10k – the newest addition to the Canada Running Series.
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by Paul Gains
Canadian Olympian Natasha Wodak heads a strong women’s field for the running of the Under Armour Eastside 10k, in Vancouver on Saturday September 16, though she is cautious about being considered the favourite.
The 35-year-old is coming off an excellent 10,000m performance at the 2017 IAAF World Championships – she finished 16th in a season best 31:55.47 – and then proceeded straight into a well-deserved rest period.
“I took a week off after the world track and field championships and have been doing some easy running.” she reveals. “It has been going well. I have been listening to my body and it is feeling good right now.”
Foot surgery last December left her playing catch up throughout the spring and summer leading to inconsistent performances. To add to the mix, she switched coaches and is now being guided by one of her heroes, 1984 Olympic 3,000m bronze medalist, Lynn Kanuka. In London she was inspired by the surprise appearance of Kanuka at the warmup track on the day of the 10000m final. The coach had only arrived in London hours before the race.
Two years ago, Wodak set an Eastside 10k event record of 33:04. She has a best 10k road time of 31:59 (Ottawa 2015) and also holds the Canadian 10,000m record of 31:41.59 which quali-fied her for the Rio Olympics. She was 22nd in the Rio 10,000m final. When she looks over the Eastside 10k field she points out that along with the ‘usual suspects’ there might be another sur-prise.
“Sarah Inglis is from Scotland and is training out here. She has been doing some training with me,” Wodak says of the graduate of Trinity Western University. “I wouldn’t be surprised if she runs low 33 or 33:30 so I am definitely going to not take her lightly either.”
Inglis finished just ahead of the Canadian at the Portland Tack Festival 5,000m in June so they are well aware of each other’s abilities. Rachel Cliff, who ran a personal best 10,000m (32:00.03 for 20th place) at the world championships is among the challengers along with marathoners Leslie Sexton, the defending Eastside 10k champion, and Lanni Marchant.
Marchant, the Canadian marathon record holder at 2:28:00, signed an endorsement contract with Under Armour in May but suffered kidney stones which required surgery. Since then she has kept her cards close to her chest and pulled out of the world championships where she had been entered in the 10,000m. Still, Wodak says she will underestimate no one.
“I think it’s going to be a really great competitive race,” Wodak continues. “I feel like we are all in the same boat, Rachel and I coming back from worlds and taking some time off, Lanni coming off a bit of an inconsistent spring and summer, so I don’t know where she is at. Leslie had a big injury in the winter and had a slow comeback. Obviously, I want to win in my hometown.”
The men’s race features 2015 Eastside champion Geoff Martinson of the BC Endurance Project a former Canadian 1,500m international, who has been tearing up the roads the past few years. He has a best of 29:26 (2016) on the roads but ran 28:48.33 on the track in June of this year in-dicating he has much potential at this distance.
The race which has been sold out for a couple of weeks, doubles as the BC championships hence the excellent turnout of local talent. Justin Kent (30:26 personal best) and Kevin Coffey (30:13) should also be contention for the prize money. The race winners will receive $1,000 with second and third earning $600 and $400 respectively. The top BC runners will collect a further $400, $300 and $200.
There is even more money at stake. Since the Under Armour Eastside 10k is part of the seven race Canada Running Series there are points to be had. The winner here will earn 60 points, and, with Wodak currently in the lead thanks to dominant victories at the Race Roster Spring Run Off 8k and Toronto Waterfront 10k earlier this year, she can solidify her grasp on the over-all title – and $5000 prize money.
For a complete start list see: https://canadarunningseries.com/2017/08/ua-eastside-10k-2017-elite-starting-list/
For more information on the run see: www.eastside10k.com
TORONTO – October 17th, 2016. By Paul Gains
Ed Whitlock has made headlines once again for an outstanding road running performance.
The 85 year old from Milton, Ontario carries expectations into every race as he sets record after record and again did not disappoint his supporters at the Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon. Crossing the line in 3:56:38 he added the over 85 age class world record to the half marathon record he set this past spring.
“Have you seen the Globe and Mail?” he asks more out of astonishment than boastfulness. “They have a photograph of me on the front page of the sports section. Scotiabank and (race director) Alan (Brookes) will be well pleased.”
Whitlock laughs but admits the effort has taken its toll.
“I feel Ok. My legs are not the best,” he admits laughing. “They are very, very stiff but apart from that everything else is ok.
“I had got in sort of the bare minimum of appropriate training preparations and I had a couple of months of serious long distance training runs and I felt that was enough. Certainly, ideally, I would have liked six months instead of two months but I felt that was just enough to get by.”
Roughly one hundred yards from his house is a cemetery which he uses for training on a daily basis. The man who caught the road running world’s attention when he became the first man over 70 to beat three hours in the marathon – he ran 2:54:49 at age 73, also set on his hometown Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon course.” – still runs laps of the cemetery for hours on end.
He calls it ‘very fast walking’ with his customary humour. But as age tries to catch up with him and his future marathons will be nearer four hours, he knows he must do more.
“I actually got up to three and a half hours this time,” he says. “The thing is three hours doesn’t do it anymore. That’s the hell of it. I need four hours now. And it’s only going to get worse.”
Laughing again he turns serious when asked if he can further reduce the record in subsequent marathon races.
“I think 3:40 would have been possible if the weather had been perfect and if I had had six months training,” he declares. “I really think 3:40 would have been possible.”
Well-wishers surround him at every race and he is asked to appear at various events and dinners. In many ways he is a reluctant hero. Notoriety doesn’t suit him. Indeed, after the race last night his 56 year old son, Neil, himself a two time Boston marathon finisher, drove him home where he had a minor celebration with his wife, Brenda. They cooked dinner together then opened a bottle of Bordeaux, the race and the crowd of well-wishers now a fond memory.
“I don’t know how to respond to them. Well how do you respond to that?” he says laughing again. “I suppose it’s nice for people to say I inspire them but I am somewhat embarrassed and I don’t know what the appropriate response is to that.
“I don’t consider myself to be an inspiring person. I am not one to stand up on the stage and say ‘you all can do this.’”
Whitlock will gradually overcome this year’s marathon race and before long will be out on that cemetery road churning out the miles. There are more races to run and more records to chase. And if he inspires many to keep running as they age then that’s a good thing too.
Post-race interview by Canadian Running Magazine.
September 21st 2016 – By Paul Gains
Ethiopian marathon star Fatuma Sado returns to the Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon in pursuit of the victory that eluded her a year ago.
Although she has won marathons in Beijing, Hamburg, Los Angeles and Warsaw she had to be content with setting a new personal best of 2:24:16 and a second place finish in Toronto last year. Clearly, she wants more on October 16th.
“Yes I was happy and I got a new best time in the marathon distance,” she says of her debut performance at this IAAF Gold Label race. “But winning is nice too.
“This year I am looking to just run a good race and use my shape now to try to win the race and be on the podium again. If it allows me to do this in a new best time then thanks to God; this is great.”
Photo credit: Photo Run
Earlier this year the 24 year old Sado – she turns 25 on October 11th, five days before the Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon – ran in the Lanzhou Marathon finishing 5th in a rather slow time of 2:38:39. But she points out that the Chinese city lies 1,521 metres above sea level and the weather was extremely hot and humid in contrast to what she can expect in Toronto.
“I can run faster than 2:24,” she declares. “I am sure in my body. But in this race in Toronto we will let God decide for the race if it is fast again.”
Since her return from China she has been preparing for the Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon with one of the strongest training groups in Ethiopia. The group of some 100 athletes meet several times a week to do long runs in the rural areas of Sendafa and Sululta outside Addis Ababa.
Amongst her training partners are Mare Dibaba, the 2015 World Champion and bronze medalist at the Rio Olympics, Amane Gobena, winner of the 2009 Toronto Waterfront marathon who has a 2:21:51 best, and the two time Ethiopian Olympian, Meskerem Assefa.
“My shape is very good; I feel strong and healthy currently,” Sado reveals. “I train with many top women in Ethiopia under Coach Haji Adillo. I learn from them every day and we all push each other very hard in training. So training is like competition every day almost.”
At present Sado lives in Addis Ababa, the Ethiopian capital at an elevation of 2350 metres although she arrived from her home in Arsi when she was a teenager. At elementary school she had shown promise and was encouraged to go to Addis to pursue a running career.
“My family is from Arsi Region,” she says of the area that has produced such talented athletes as Haile Gebrselassie, Kenenisa Bekele, Tirunesh and Genzebe Dibaba as well as Derartu Tulu. “I was born outside of Addis Ababa; and I came to Addis after I was finished my primary school levels to pursue a training group. I was in a running club in primary school and we ran races for the club under the school name.”
Like all Ethiopians, she grew up knowing the history of the nation’s distance running success. And she says the pride in these runners spilled over to her and her peers.
“Every legend of our sport from Ethiopia inspired me and still does daily and I hope I am inspiration to some young girls right now as well,” Sado declares.
Life in Addis revolves around training and recovery and she has ambitions to be amongst the very best in the world. Family and friends are important too.
“I have brothers and sisters, but right now I am the only athlete,” she reveals. “I have two of my brothers living with me in Addis Ababa and they help to look after me for my training and meals and physio.
“I like the cinema, shopping and Ethiopian traditional coffee in a friend’s home. After training, all athletes are very, very tired so it is difficult to see other runners.”
Each time she is reminded of her Toronto experience last year she smiles. One of the highlights was joining other Ethiopian runners, past and present, at Rendezvous Restaurant on Toronto’s Danforth Avenue for an Ethiopian dinner.
“I liked the Habesha meal very much and the people were very nice to us,” she says adding, “Toronto is very nice and beautiful to me. Maybe this time I will go to see some sights.”
The field in Toronto will be loaded with talent. Shure Demise, the 2015 Toronto champion, now 20 years old, is also returning as the favourite. Her margin of victory a year ago was a mere 39 seconds.
Sado is unlikely to allow the youngster to escape easily this time around and if the conditions are right then maybe the women’s course record of 2:22:43 held jointly by Kenya’s Sharon Cherop (2010) and Koren Jelela (2011) could be challenged. After all, this is potentially the most competitive Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon in history.
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For More Information and to join Fatuma Sado, Shure Demise and Canadian Olympian Krista DuChene on the starting line:
August 4th, 2016 – By Paul Gains
As the fall marathon season approaches many of Kenya’s top runners are huddled together in rustic training camps deep in the Great Rift Valley training hard while their managers negotiate their entries into the lucrative races.
Two of them, Philemon Rono and Nicholas Rotich, have agreed to run the 2016 Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon on October 16th a decision greeted warmly by the organizers who are eager to see Derissa Chimsa’s 2013 course record (2:07:05) beaten. Toronto Waterfront is an IAAF Gold Label race.
The pair train in a 30 person group in Kaptaget near Eldoret under the direction of renowned Kenyan international Patrick Sang, the 1992 Olympic 3000m steeplechase silver medalist.
From left to right: Rodgers Chumo (junior), Geoffrey Kamworor, Nicholas Rotich, Eliud Kipchoge, Philemon Rono.
Amongst Sang’s athletes is the reigning Olympic marathon champion Stephen Kiprotich of Uganda, Geoffrey Kamworor, the reigning IAAF world half marathon champion, and the man favoured to win the Olympic marathon August 21st, Eliud Kipchoge.
Clearly both Rono and Rotich have benefited as well as been influenced by their association with the group and with Kipchoge in particular.
“Eliud is a lot of inspiration for me and the same applies for the group we train in,” says Rono, who sports a personal best time of 2:07:07 recorded at the 2014 Hamburg Marathon. “I want to be like him and that’s my dream which I hope to achieve one day.”
“We are reporting each Monday to the camp and leave again on Saturday afternoon. We have a break on Sunday and spend the time with our families. Our first training starts at 6 am. Eliud is the one who wakes us every day at 5.45 am. It depends on the training. It can be a long run from 30-40k or track training. Otherwise it’s a 1 hour 20 minute long run.”
Rono, 25, shares a room with steeplechaser Brimin Kipruto, the 2008 Olympic champion, when he is at the camp.
“We always take our breakfast after training. We like to have chai with bread,” Rono adds. “We have a chef who cooks for us every day. Our menu is very balanced. We do have electricity at the camp. After dinner I like to watch a video and then we go to bed early to get enough sleep for the next day’s training.”
Without question the atmosphere in the camp is focused completely on generating world-class performances and thereby providing a good lifestyle for the athletes and their families.
Earlier this year, Rono was selected to represent Kenya at the African Cross Country Championships – he had raced the previous year for Kenya at these championships – but turned down the invitation in favour of a half marathon race on the roads the same weekend. The African Cross Country Championships would not be an earner, and as Rono has put his career as a qualified policeman on hold to chase athletic excellence, he needs all the financial support he can secure to support his family.
Another member of this magnificent training group is Laban Korir the 2014 Toronto winner. He too has been helpful in advising the athletes on his trip to Canada.
“I am training with Laban,” Rono adds. “He told me about Toronto and he said it’s a very good race. So I am looking forward to go there myself. I heard it has a flat course and has great fans. My goal is to win the race.”
STWM 2015. Photo Credit: Photo Run
While Rono has had to rely on Korir for his ‘intel’, Rotich, just 19 years old, has at least been to Toronto and run 30 kilometres of the course. A year ago he was a pacemaker for the men’s A group, comfortably taking them through half-way in 63:45 and 30k in 1:31:23. This year’s race will mark his debut at the full marathon distance.
“Yes, it will be my marathon debut. My training partners advised me to be patient and persevere,” he reveals. “I am nervous as it will be my first race. Although I paced several marathons, finishing is something new to me. But I hope to be among top three in Toronto.”
Rotich joined the group in 2013 and has great aspirations in marathoning, also pointing to Eliud Kipchoge as his mentor. And, if he had not been encouraged to take up running during primary school, like so many other Kenyans, he knows he would struggle to earn a living as a farmer.
Marathon racing can be lucrative and is one of the prime motivators for these runners. The prize money in Toronto for instance is $25,000 Cdn to the winner of both the men’s and women’s races, $15,000 for second, $8,000 for third down to $2,000 to the eighth place finisher.
Although the Olympic marathon is being run on a Sunday and the athletes return to their families on Saturday afternoon, the group are hatching plans to watch Kipchoge go for Olympic gold either in Eldoret or in the town of Kaptagat on the 21st.
Should Kipchoge win the Olympic gold, as most experts predict, Rono and Rotich will certainly be further inspired as they prepare for the Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon. And we may well see that course record shattered by one of these two.
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For more information and to run with the Kenyans: www.STWM.ca
June 9, 2016 – by Paul Gains
Although the official announcement won’t be made for another month Krista DuChene has checked all the necessary boxes and is poised to represent Canada in the 2016 Olympic Marathon.
Now the 39 year old Brantford, Ontario native can look forward to racing the Toronto Waterfront 10 on Saturday June 25 without the pressure of anyone looking over her shoulder and assessing her fitness. Nevertheless, she will approach the 10km race with a specific target.
“I think it’s just to throw a bit of a changeup in the pace, just try to switch it up from the half marathons that I have done,” she reveals. “It will be a tune-up speed workout that’s the way we will look at it.
Photo credit: Inge Johnson/Canada Running Series
“In four of my last five races I have been second place. So, to be honest, if I get second again that day: whatever! I have been fit and healthy all year with injuries so who cares if I don’t get the win. What matters at the end of the day is that I am healthy and fit and ready to put it all out there on August 14 (the date of the Rio Olympics marathon).”
DuChene raced several times in the winter and early spring looking to satisfy Athletics Canada’s “proof of fitness”. She achieved the Olympic marathon standard with 2:29:38 in Rotterdam (April 2015) and this proof of fitness was required. After winning the Banque Scotia 21k de Montreal (April 24) she accomplished her task then managed a week off during which she admits to enjoying culinary treats. The rest was short-lived, however, as her 15 week marathon buildup toward Rio began immediately afterwards.
Although her legs will no doubt feel the effects of the extra training miles she will race to win the Toronto Waterfront 10, the newest race on the Canada Running Series calendar. She chose to run jt rather than fly across the country to compete in the Scotiabank Vancouver Half Marathon which is on the same weekend.
“It’s an early start so I will go to Toronto Friday night,” she explains. “I am there and back in less than 24 hours. There is a lot to be said for staying close to home, in your own environment, in your own bed, your own food and everything like that. I love going out to Vancouver to do that race but I think it just made sense to throw a 10k in there and also so I could focus more on those harder longer runs locally.”
Amongst her fans in Rio will be husband Jonathan and her three children. They have booked tickets for the marathon finish at Copacabana Beach. Now that all three kids are in school she no longer has to wake up before sunrise to get in her training and is obviously feeling the benefit of additional sleep.
On the Toronto starting line she will face Dayna Pidhoresky, who beat her at the Vancouver First Half Marathon in February, as well as Vancouver’s star master’s runner, Catherine Watkins. The latter a 44 year old rising star represented Canada at the 2015 Pan Am Games marathon where she finished a solid 8th. More recently she raced in the Ottawa 10k on May 28. She was the first Masters woman and finished 12th overall.
Photo credit: Inge Johnson/Canada Running Series
“I went into Ottawa feeling pretty fit but the conditions there weren’t ideal for a fast time,” Watkins recalls of the heat and humidity which plagued the race. “I kind of suffered in that heat. But I think in a few weeks in Toronto that is definitely my chance to go under 34 minutes again. That’s the goal.”
Watkins has seen remarkable improvement in her running career since joining up with BC Endurance Project coach Richard Lee. Among those she often trains with are 2012 Olympian Dylan Wykes, 2016 Olympic qualifier Natasha Kodak, Pidhoresky, and, when she is in Vancouver training, Canadian marathon record holder Lanni Marchant. They all live within a few kilometres of each other.
With two children in school full time Watkins is able to fit in her training while pursuing altruistic activities.
“I have been doing some volunteer work with a group out here called Street 2 Front,” she reveals. “They are a school out here that works with children from the Downtown Eastside. They are kids who generally haven’t made it in the regular school program. The man who runs the program has developed an amazing running program with them and has inspired them through running.
“A couple of years ago we organized a run to raise money. They took all the kids to Mount Kilimanjaro. They are doing another trip next year, to Peru to hike the Inca Trail.”
While the women’s race at Toronto Waterfront 10 is compelling stuff the men’s race holds great interest too. It will feature Olympians Reid Coolsaet and Eric Gillis.
Both represented Canada in the 2012 Olympic marathon while Gillis also ran the 10,000m at the 2008 Beijing Olympics. And with DuChene soon to become a first time Olympian there will definitely be an Olympic edge to the race.
Organizers are throwing a “Rio Send-Off” post-race party complete with Brazilian drummers and samba dancers from 8:45 a.m until 9:15 a.m. to celebrate the Olympians. There will also be presentations by the Honourable MP Peter Fonseca, himself a 1996 Olympic marathoner and the Brazilian Consul General.
Join the celebrations at the Toronto Waterfront 10k on June 25th!
TORONTO. March 10th 2016. Rob Watson has always been known as a free spirit, someone who accepts whatever results he achieves on the roads and on the track.
Mostly those results have been impressive.
Twice he has represented Canada at the IAAF World Track and Field Championships running the 3,000m steeplechase at the 2009 Berlin championships and the marathon in Moscow in 2013. A year ago he was crowned Canadian Marathon Champion.
Now he is counting on achieving the Olympic qualifying standard at the Virgin London Marathon. At the age of 32 he knows his time amongst the upper echelon is limited.
“It’s my last chance to qualify for the Olympics,” he admits. “I haven’t really planned my running career past London. If I do well in London and, I am fortunate enough to qualify for the Olympics then, obviously, I will aim towards that. I don’t know where I will go with it. It’s London or bust pretty much.
“The London marathon is April 24 and that is what all the training is aiming toward. That will be my last shot at getting an Olympic qualifier so we are putting all our eggs in one basket.”
Together with his coach/brother Pete Watson he has mapped out his path to the Olympics which includes the Modo Spring Run Off 8k on Sunday March 20th. Training is, by his own admission, proceeding as he had hoped.
“It’s going quite well, quite well,” he reveals. “I am pretty fit. I qualified for the IAAF World Half Marathon Championships in Cardiff, Wales (March 26th) so all systems are go. The Modo 8k is kind of like a ‘blow out the carbon’ race. I like to always get a shorter faster one in before the actual (championship) race.”
Watson grew up in London, Ontario then attended Colorado State University on an athletics scholarship. For several years he trained with the Speed River Track Club in Guelph, Ontario before selling many of his belongings and moving out west to Vancouver. He is currently living in the Kitsilano Beach area with his girlfriend, Genevieve.
“I am right down in West Kits near Jericho Beach,” he explains. “It’s about a half kilometre run to Jericho Beach. When they hold the Canadian Cross Country Championships here, it’s at Jericho Beach.
“It’s a great location. Dylan Wykes lives about two hundred metres away, Luc Bruchet is around the corner. Chris Winter is right up the street. There is a good group of us runners down here in this neighbourhood.”
Watson was pleased to learn that Music Heals is the featured charity in this year’s Modo 8k, being a huge music lover himself. In fact, the Executive Director, Chris Brandt, will be among those who toe the starting line but with slightly different expectations. Brandt says he is delighted the charity will again benefit from the association with Canada Running Series.
“Most of the music charities in Canada focus on music education,” he declares. “We are one of only two that I know of that focus exclusively on music therapy.
“Music Heals raises money and awareness for music therapy in Canada. We are based in Vancouver and we fund programs across the country that provide music therapy for everything from kids to palliative, seniors, autism, dementia, burn units, AIDS and HIV, bereavement rehabilitation and a whole bunch more.”
On March 5th seventy two bars across the country participated in a fundraiser whereby they donated $1 from each cover charge collected to Music Heals. Brandt points out that, in its three year existence, the charity has signed cheques in support of various music therapy programs to the tune of $500,000.
Watson himself attends as many concerts as he can fit in. A big fan of musicians like Chuck Ragan, Hothouse Music, Bad Religion and the Canadian band Propagandhi he is also one of the few elite runners who actually listens to music on some of his training runs.
“Sometimes, when I am going for an easy run I will tell my girlfriend ‘I am going to listen to music for a while’ then strap that on and go for a jog down the beach,” Watson reveals.
“Generally when I train it’s faster, louder stuff. I am a huge fan of the early 90’s skate punk scene. Loud and fast when I am training. When I am home it’s a little more low key. Anything with a guitar, you can’t go wrong.”
Genevieve doesn’t necessarily share his music tastes.
“I took her to one of the Progagandhi shows,” he says with a laugh. “She didn’t know what was going on. There is a good mosh pit and people kind of dance around and go a little crazy. I try to behave now that I am a little bit older. I don’t want to get injured. I try to behave; sometimes it doesn’t work.”
Watson expects the Modo 8k field will be a strong one and he will have a fight for the victory even if he hasn’t studied the competition.
“I know that (Trevor) Hofbauer is coming so I think he will be one of the stronger runners,” he says. “I don’t know who else is coming.
“It’s a good race. If it’s a nice day I would like to get out there and run under 24 (minutes) for sure. ‘23 mid’ would be a nice. I am just going to go out there and blow the doors off and run as hard as I can.”
The field got a lot stronger with the addition of 2012 Canadian Olympian Dylan Wykes who confirmed his entry late Wednesday. He has been battling some injuries lately. Canadian international Terrence Attema is also confirmed. Meanwhile, Dayna Pidhoresky, the 2011 overall Canada Running Series champion, leads the women’s field.
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For More information and to register:
https://canadarunningseries.com/spring8k/
Just before midnight on Saturday October 17 Jean Paul Bedard – JP to his friends – will toe a the starting line outside Toronto’s University Avenue courthouse and run two circuits of the Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon.
If he has timed it just right he will have thirty to forty minutes rest before joining 18,000+ other runners – who will raise $4 million for local charities – as the official IAAF Gold Label Race begins. By the end of the day he will have run a triple Waterfront marathon – a whopping total of 126.6 kilometres!
The 49 year old has battled demons in the past including alcohol and drug addiction, suicide attempts and depression. He has overcome much but there is nothing crazy about this incredible physical challenge.
“The first thing in this is an awareness campaign,” Bedard says. “I am almost 50, I am a recovering alcoholic and addict, I have been sober for a little over 18 years. I spent a lot of time beating myself up with different substances kind of masking what was going on inside.
“About two months before the Boston marathon in 2013 I finally disclosed to my wife and adult son, who was 23 at the time, that I am the survivor of childhood sexual abuse and rape.”
Bedard ran a little over three hours for the Boston marathon that year – he has a personal best of 2:57 – and admits that he was an emotional wreck as he tried to come to terms with having shared his past. Midway through the race he broke down crying and hyperventilating. Nevertheless he completed the race. After showering and changing at the hotel he and his wife walked out onto the marathon course. That was when the terrorist bombs exploded.
The whole experience proved overwhelming and he reckons he was suffering Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome. But with his family’s support he entered a treatment program at The Gatehouse which helped him and helps other adult survivors of childhood sexual abuse. The impact of the treatment was enormous.
“I got my life back,” he declares. “For such a long time running 
was a kind of escape, running away from myself, turning off my brain all that stuff but, through this program, I started looking at running as a way to kind of run back into myself and come to terms with all of these things in me. It became almost a spiritual practice.
“And I was so grateful to the program at Gatehouse, how much everyone there had helped me. I decided I would go back to Boston the following year and try to raise money for the Centre and, also, raise a little bit of awareness for childhood sexual abuse especially. There are very few male advocates out there. I got in touch with (retired NHL star and victim of sexual abuse) Theo Fleury and asked for help and he has been instrumental in helping me find resources.”
Returning to Boston in 2014 he decided he would do a ‘double marathon’ setting out from Boston in the reverse direction to meet up with the official entrants in time for the official start. The logistics were quite complicated. Security had been enhanced a year after the bombing but in the end he raised more than $25,000 for The Gatehouse.
The idea of doing a triple Toronto originated during a conversation he had with Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon race director Alan Brookes.
“I have an affinity to the Canada Running Series and to Alan,” Bedard explains. “I have run this marathon 10 times, this will be my 11th, 12th and 13th time running STWM. Alan is like the race ambassador. He is not in it for the cash he is in it for the love of the sport. He said ‘JP it’s great what you did in Boston but it’s going to be hard to outdo that.’ That was the genesis of the triple Toronto. I am not sure what happens next year!”
Bedard laughs as he relates this tale. Formerly a school teacher he is now a full time writer with a book coming out next Spring called ‘Running Into Yourself.” It deals with the subject of running to combat depression, anxiety and traumatic events. In a typical week he puts in roughly 200 kilometres. Thankfully he has a shoe sponsor as he goes through a pair of shoes every three to four weeks.
At this point he is still sorting through logistics for the Waterfront Marathon. His wife will likely accompany him in the car during the first two loops and he expects three or four ultramarathoners he’s enlisted will jump in and out at various points.
Bedard is not fundraising this time. He says you can only go to the well so often. Keeping the topic of rape and sexual abuse at the forefront is his aim especially since more than a dozen women have come forward accusing former CBC personality, Jian Ghomeshi, of assault.
“I have also been associating with these two twitter campaigns,” Bedard says, “one of those broke just after the Jian Ghomeshi scandal, the #BeenRapedNeverReported campaign and also the (Kathleen) Wynne government’s #ItsNeverOkay.
“I was the victim of sexual abuse by a hockey coach when I was younger but I was also raped in a ravine by two men when I was 12 years old. I have never told my story. So part of it is to run and keep this story front and centre. Leading up to the Jian Ghomeshi trial it’s important to keep it out there.”
Committed to marathon running, Bedard says he runs ten to twelve marathons a year mostly in the 3:10 – 3:15 range. For the triple Toronto he will scale back his pace to ensure he can cover this massive distance.
“I would like to target each of those first two marathons around 4 and a half hours, somewhere around that,” he declares. The time does not matter in any case.
“I think the three things I would like to accomplish are number one, keeping the conversation toward sexual violence in our community at the forefront, because I think we are at the turning point where we will see change in that dialogue. The second thing would be just to show the resiliency of being able to overcome the trauma and challenges in our life. I would like to show that despite the trauma I went through in my childhood, the addictions and depression and suicide attempts and all of that, I am still going.
“And I think the third element would be just to kind of show just how community building running is, and choosing the Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon was the perfect vehicle for that. I think that is everything that race embodies.”
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To join JP on the Start Line, register for Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon at www.stwm.ca
It gives us ENORMOUS pleasure to announce that Krista DuChene will be on the start line at STWM — vying for overall as well as National Championship honours, chasing records, and moving inexorably towards an Olympic dream. In SO many ways Krista captures the spirit of the marathon, of what can be achieved by dedication, determination and great courage. As a marathoner, as a mom, as a nutritionist, as a Canadian hero, Krista is a great inspiration to all. Never give up! Never quit! Even against great odds. We’re thrilled she’ll be on that Start Line with us all on October 18th.
Enjoy Paul’s feature, and stay in touch with @kristaduchene on Twitter and on Instagram. #ShareTheJourney to #STWM. #InItTogether –Alan (Brookes), Race Director
TORONTO June 16th 2015. A little over a year has passed since Krista DuChene struggled across the finish line of the Banque Scotia 21k de Montreal with what would be diagnosed as a broken femur – a potentially career ending injury.
Yet, this 38 year old mother of three is now poised to represent Canada at the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.
On April 12th of this year DuChene finished 3rd at the Rotterdam Marathon with a time of 2:29:38 beating the Olympic standard by twelve seconds.
The miraculous comeback has afforded her the luxury of going into her next marathon, not having to chase standards, but to run the race the way she wants to. Accordingly, the Brantford, Ontario native has chosen to run the 2015 Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon October 18th.
The event is the only IAAF Gold Label marathon in Canada and this year will also serve as the Athletics Canada National Championship Marathon.
“You know it’s an absolute wonderful feeling to have that standard so early in the qualifying period,” she declares, “and just to be able to sit back and reflect, and let it soak in, and make wise decisions moving forward, as opposed to panicking and thinking ‘oh what race am I going to do now to get the standard.’
“But, at the same time, I am not taking that for granted. Certainly we do have a couple of women who are making their mark and I have to watch out for them if they do run faster than my 2:29:38.”
DuChene is fully aware that she has beaten the odds, so to speak, being much nearer to 40 than most of her competitors and being able to recover from an extraordinary fracture. There surely were times where she wondered about her future as an elite marathon runner.
“You know it all comes down to my faith, everyday,” DuChene explains. “I knew it was part of a bigger plan. I had peace in the hospital. I had my share of crying. That was difficult but, not once did I have this fear or panic that something better wouldn’t come of it. I didn’t know what it would be.
“I said, the day after surgery, it would take two years to run my next marathon. Two days after surgery I knew I could do it in one year. I didn’t think I would get the standard on my first try; I was fully mentally prepared for three tries. I think that is why my recovery from Rotterdam was longer this time. Physically I was fine but emotionally, just understanding and reflecting on the significance of the previous year, was pretty hard to grasp. So I really needed to take the time to emotionally recover from it in a good year.”
The decision to run Toronto and forego an opportunity to represent Canada at either the Pan American Games or the World Championships in Beijing was a difficult one for the athlete and her coach, Rick Mannen. They consulted and reflected and ultimately decided that she should completely recover from Rotterdam and build up gradually for a fall marathon. The Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon was a natural choice.
The Toronto race has been good to her. It was the scene of her assault on Sylvia Ruegger’s then 28 year old Canadian record of 2:28:36 in 2013. Though she did dip under the time with her 2:28:32 personal best she was beaten to the line by Lanni Marchant’s 2:28:00. And, she doesn’t have to think long and hard for reasons to return to the event.
“There are numerous things I can say I love about the Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon,” DuChene reveals. “Number one (race director) Alan Brookes and his amazing Canada Running Series team. I call it my home marathon because it is close in distance; I don’t need to travel. Family and friends are close, the crowd is fun. The comfort and the familiarity of the race, the international field, it’s our national championship and it’s an IAAF Gold Label event. That’s probably more than a half dozen reasons.
“There’s no pressure for me to hit a certain time. At the same time, I can maybe go for a faster time and be a bit more risky with that. I still tend to be an even paced, conservative, runner going out at a pace I think I can hold to the end. The nice thing after making the decision to not do a summer marathon I just kind of went right back to the bottom and I am going to slowly build a base and get my routine back, thin out the sweets a bit, increase the mileage and intensity in a really gradual way.”
Two of her three children are currently in school and the youngest, at 4, will start school next September which will give her a little more freedom. For the past several years she has risen at 5:00 a.m., even in the coldest winter months, to run before her husband Jonathan, leaves for work. Then she would often run on the treadmill at the Wayne Gretzky Sports Centre while her daughter was in childcare on site.
With the luxury of building up for Toronto ever so gradually DuChene could well be in a position to beat her personal best and challenge Marchant’s national record. The Rotterdam performance was inhibited somewhat by windy conditions and the lack of a pacemaker for the latter stages of the race. She’s proven she can beat the odds time and time again. Maybe a record is in the cards October 18th.
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For further information and to register to run with Krista, visit www.STWM.ca
TORONTO June 8th 2015. Canada sent three male marathoners to the 2012 Olympics and with the qualifying period for Rio 2016 having opened in January there is speculation that three men will toe the line in Rio next year.
Just who will wear the maple leaf, however, is the big question.
The standard of 2 hours 12 minutes 50 seconds will take some doing. Two members of the Newmarket Huskies have made the commitment to achieving it and to realising a dream of representing Canada at the highest level.
Matt Loiselle and his training partner Sami Jibril will begin their buildup towards the 2015 Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon next month. They both feel that Canada’s pre eminent marathon, which is the country’s only IAAF Gold Label marathon, is the venue to produce their lofty goal.
Loiselle has a best of 2:16:01 from the 2011 Toronto event. A professional coach when he’s not putting in the miles, he understands that this time is a far cry from the standard. Nevertheless, he believes it is possible.
“I think so,” he declares. “I have got up to about 30k at 2:12 pace. Both times that I ran the Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon I got to 30k at 2:12 flat pace. That’s when the pacemaker dropped out.
“I know the things I need to work on now and I will talk to (Coach) Hugh (Cameron) about it and make some adjustments and compare to previous buildups. If you look at my best half marathon time, which is under 1:04, I think it’s doable. I just believe in myself and I believe we will get good training in. And, it will help having Sami there too. If I didn’t believe it was possible I wouldn’t be really going for it. It has always been the goal.”
The 30 year old has represented Canada twice before, most recently at the 2009 IAAF World Half Marathon championships where he placed 55th in 1:04:59. He is fully aware that he and Jibril might well be fighting for one place.
Already Reid Coolsaet, a 2012 Olympian at this distance, has achieved the standard by running 2:11:24 in Rotterdam this past April. And Eric Gillis ran a personal best in Toronto last October with 2:11:21, albeit before the qualifying period. Both he and Coolsaet are good bets to return to the Olympic race and, with only three to qualify, it leaves the Newmarket Huskies pair chasing one place.
“I totally expect that, actually,” Loiselle continues. “I think it will similar to what it was in 2012 probably under 2:12 (will be required). Look at Gillis. He is running as well as he ever has. Reid had a good one in Rotterdam. And you can never really count Dylan (Wykes) out. Who knows who might be able to come out and surprise? I would be surprised if 2:12:50 did get you in actually.”
And this leads to the question what if he makes the team and Jibril is left behind? How would he feel about that?
“Yes, if I knocked him off the team it would hurt him and if he knocks me off the team it would hurt me,” he says laughing. “It’s 42.2k and we have the same goal. Obviously if he makes the team and I didn’t I would be happy for him.”
“It’s kind of funny. I had a talk to a group of grade sixes yesterday. One guy asked me ‘Are all the guys you’re running against enemies?’ And I said ‘Well I guess when you start on the line you are enemies and then afterwards you respect each another and you can be friends. But we all have the same goals. We want to beat each other.’”
Jibril, now 25, first came to national attention when he won the 2013 Harry’s Spring Run Off in Toronto’s High Park. That victory surprised many. At the time he was more attuned to running on the track and used road racing to break up the routine of winter training. Since then he has become a consistent road racer. A year ago he took the silver medal at the Canadian Half Marathon Championships, hanging on to Eric Gillis for most of the race.
“That is a tactic that I do once in a while, ‘dying to success’ as Coach Hugh calls it,” Jibril reveals. “Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn’t but in that race I had one option to run with Eric or separate early. I committed and it was a good run. I ran a huge personal best by 90 seconds. I definitely got good results off of that.”
“I think that was a perfect tactic. I don’t think I could have run faster if I didn’t go with Eric. The way he runs helped me out because he goes out so evenly paced, and conservative. He definitely helped me over 15 or 16k, however far we went together. It was obvious more than three quarters of the race.”
Born in Rome, Jibril is the son of Somali-Ethiopian parents who fled the strife in that region of East Africa. He was a mediocre runner at Heart Lake Secondary School in Brampton, Ontario but under Hugh Cameron’s guidance has developed well these past three years. Loiselle speaks highly of their partnership.
“When I first met him he barely said a word,” Loiselle says with a laugh. “I thought he was pretty shy. So I had to gradually try to get him out of his shell. Now he will actually come and hang out. We have a group of friends who will go out for a drink or for dinner and so we are starting to socialize more.”
“At least three times a week we train together. We do our intervals Tuesday and Friday and a long run on Sunday. Today I ran into him on our easy day – we run the same places. He is a great guy to train with. No ‘BS’, we get along and we talk about anything really when we are running. I enjoy training with him.”
For his part Jibril points out that when he first began training with Loiselle he was working the graveyard shift at the Toronto Transit Commission as a mechanic and barely had any time to socialise. Now he works the 3:00 p.m. to 11:00 p.m. shift and has weekends off. The pair train at 7:00 a.m. usually.
This year the Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon is also the official Athletics Canada National Championship Marathon so there is added incentive for the top Canadians to contest the race. Both Jibril and Loiselle hope they run fast enough to earn a place on the Rio bound Olympic team, for that would be a dream come true.
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