2023 TCS CHARITY CHALLENGE MARKS 20TH ANNIVERSARY WITH $53.5 MILLION RAISED FOR CANADIAN CHARITIES

By | Charity Challenge | No Comments

TORONTO, ON (November 22, 2023) – Canada Running Series proudly closes the 2023 TCS Toronto Waterfront Marathon season by announcing that the 20th annual TCS Charity Challenge has raised nearly $2.5 million for 159 Canadian charities. With nearly 21,000 community donations and 2,600 active fundraisers in 2023 alone, the TCS Charity Challenge has now raised over $53.5 million since its inception in 2003.

With over 150 charities to choose from each year, the annual TCS Charity Challenge is a unique opportunity that allows TCS Toronto Waterfront Marathon participants to customize their experience by running for a cause that moves them. The impacts of fundraising can be seen in communities across Toronto, with charities supporting a variety of causes from environmental sustainability to Indigenous health, LGBTQ2+ support, cancer research and so much more.

“We are so proud of all those who ran for a cause and donated to support our 20th Charity Challenge,” said Alan Brookes, Race Director at Canada Running Series (CRS). “It’s inspiring to see running bring the community together to make a difference for so many incredible organizations. These are the kinds of impacts that span far beyond race weekend and can really make a positive change in our communities in Toronto and beyond.”

“We are completely in awe of the outstanding fundraising efforts of the 2023 TCS Toronto Waterfront Marathon participants,” said Soumen Roy, Executive Director and Country Head, Canada, TCS. “The tremendous success of the TCS Charity Challenge is a testament to the strength and spirit of Toronto’s running community.”

This year’s race weekend was a smashing success, as Toronto witnessed an impressive gathering of over 25,000 people from 78 countries for the world-class TCS Toronto Waterfront Marathon. In its 34th edition, the marathon celebrated an incredible year of firsts as four debut marathoners took home champion titles and the event saw record-breaking participation.

This standout finale comes on the heels of the marathon’s recent Evergreen Certification by the Council for Responsible Sport. This award recognizes the Marathon’s commitment to environmental stewardship and showcases the efforts of the Marathon to make the event the most sustainable in Canada. These efforts extend through all facets of the race weekend, including their feature charity partners, Trees for Life and Trans Canada Trail who raised over $18,000 this year for their sustainability projects.

The success of the 2023 TCS Toronto Waterfront Marathon and TCS Charity Challenge once again demonstrate that it is not just a race, but a celebration of achievement, unity and the unstoppable spirit of the running community that creates a lasting impact.

 

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About the TCS Toronto Waterfront Marathon

The TCS Toronto Waterfront Marathon is Canada’s premier running event and the grand finale of the Canada Running Series (CRS). Since 2017, the race has served as the Athletics Canada national marathon championship race and has doubled as the Olympic trials. Using innovation and organization as guiding principles, Canada Running Series stages great experiences for participants of all levels, from Canadian Olympians to recreational and charity runners. With a mission of “building community through the sport of running,” CRS is committed to making sport part of sustainable communities and the city-building process.

To learn more about the TCS Toronto Waterfront Marathon, visit www.torontowaterfrontmarathon.com.

About Tata Consultancy Services (TCS)

Tata Consultancy Services is an IT services, consulting and business solutions organization that has been partnering with many of the world’s largest businesses in their transformation journeys for over 50 years. TCS offers a consulting-led, cognitive powered, integrated portfolio of business, technology and engineering services and solutions. This is delivered through its unique Location Independent Agile™ delivery model, recognized as a benchmark of excellence in software development.

A part of the Tata group, India’s largest multinational business group, TCS has over 614,000 of the world’s best-trained consultants in 55 countries. The company generated consolidated revenues of US $27.9 billion in the fiscal year ended March 31, 2023, and is listed on the BSE (formerly Bombay Stock Exchange) and the NSE (National Stock Exchange) in India. TCS’ proactive stance on climate change and award-winning work with communities across the world have earned it a place in leading sustainability indices such as the MSCI Global Sustainability Index and the FTSE4Good Emerging Index.

For more information, visit www.tcs.com

About Canada Running Series (CRS)

Canada Running Series is the nation’s premier running circuit with 7 events, 4 in Toronto, 2 in Vancouver, and 1 in Montreal. It annually attracts over 50,000 participants and raises more than $6 million for some 320 mostly-local charities. The Series includes the World Athletics Gold Label TCS Toronto Waterfront Marathon, and the Athletics Canada National Marathon Championships. Since 1999, CRS has gained international recognition for innovation and organization. To learn more about CRS, visit https://canadarunningseries.com/.

 

MEDIA CONTACT:

Canada Running Series:

Damien Hope

damien@canadarunningseries.com

Tata Consultancy Services:

Tiffany Fisher

tiffany.fisher@tcs.com

Ethiopian Women Dominate a Windy TCS Toronto Waterfront Marathon by Paul Gains

By | Uncategorised | No Comments

As some predicted Ethiopian women swept the first four places at the TCS Toronto Waterfront Marathon today but the seven second gap between the winner Buze Diriba and Fozya Jemal confirmed the women’s race in this World Athletics Elite label race was one for the ages.

Buze crossed the finish line in 2:23:11 on a day where a cold 22km/hour wind wrecked chances of anyone breaking Kenyan Magalyne Masai’s 2019 course record (2:22:16). Joining her on the podium were Waganesh Mekasha (2:23:12) and Afera Godfay (2:23:15).

The four had closely followed the excellent pacemaking of Canada’s Kevin Coffey who pointed to upcoming fueling stations, potholes at the side of the road and encouraged them all the way through the first half in 1:11:01 and onto 30km where he stopped. It was here that Waganesh Mekasha – the 2023 Ottawa Marathon winner – suffered a fuel bottle mishap. But Diriba’s confidence grew the closer to the finish they ran.

“I have been training well and I was expecting to win but after 40km I was confident,” said the winner, who lived for a time in Albuquerque, New Mexico and can understand and speak English well. “I knew I could finish well.  With one kilometer left I felt it was possible and I think I was focused in the last 500 meters, and I kept pushing. I didn’t see my time.”

Asked if she feared one of her rivals might catch her, she laughed and nodded.

“It was windy, but I managed. I was ok,” she offered. Her result was a substantial improvement over her previous marathon personal best – 2:28:06 from the 2019 Houston Marathon. 

The men’s field agreed at Saturday’s technical meeting they wanted to run 2:07 pace taking into consideration the cross wind forecasted. So, when the lead pack passed the halfway point in 62:30 observers worried they had gone too fast.

Once the eager pacemakers had dropped out by 30km the Kenyan duo of Alfred Kipchirchir and Elvis Cheboi set out after the C$20,000 first place prize money. Kipchirchir has three times beaten 60 minutes in the half marathon distance and Toronto Waterfront was his debut at the full distance. The early pace took its toll, and he faded in the final kilometers. 

Cheboi won in 2:09:20, a new personal best. 

“It was a very tough course,” he said. “I managed it. I don’t know, I think it was about 30km or more that I broke away. I made a move but later on it was very tough and windy.

“The first half was very fast but the end one was very tough, so I struggled a little bit.”

Cheboi had only arrived in Toronto on Friday night having missed his flight from Eldoret to Nairobi. Landing in Toronto he was briefly detained by Canadian immigration authorities, so he was all smiles once he settled into the race hotel. 

A jovial character, he gifted his winner’s laurels to the anti-doping control officer who accompanied him to the awards ceremony and post-race press conference.

As Kiprchirchir paid for his overzealous start, Adugna Takele of Ethiopia passed him to claim second place in 2:10:26. 

“Overall, I am happy with second place, but it was really windy,” Adugna admitted. “I couldn’t’push through it. The course is good but the wind?”

The TCS Toronto Waterfront Marathon also served as the 2023 Canadian Marathon Championships. The men’s and women’s winners were both surprises and both marathon debutantes.

Carolyn Pomerleau of Quebec City ran 2:34:44 to capture the $8,000 winner’s purse along with the gold medal, while Vancouver’s Thomas Broatch took the men’s race running solo for most of the second half. He ran 2:16:25 which also earned him sixth place overall.

“It’s an interesting distance. A lot of things people told me about the marathon were true,” Broatch, who was still running 1,500m races four months ago said. “The first half I felt really easy. I thought I was going to be able to pick it up but then in the final 7 or 8km I was surprised how much I slowed down. Thankfully it was really late in the race.”

Meanwhile Pomerleau was delighted and surprised with her performance.

“They didn’t think about me, they were like ‘who is this girl we don’t know her?’” She said with a good nature laugh.

“It’s my first marathon of all time. My half marathon personal best was 1:13:14 and I ran that in Ottawa. I finished third in the Canadian 10km championship with 33:16 so the time in my 10k is more competitive than in the marathon. I only had eight weeks of training for this marathon. I was ok. My goal was to do a sub 2:35 and I did it.”

Among the many Americans who were using Toronto Waterfront to either qualify for the US Olympic Trials or to bolster their confidence going into that race, Emily Durgin, a resident of Flagstaff, Arizona came out on top. She finished fifth overall in personal best 2:26:46.

“I honestly didn’t know my pace; it was all over the place because of the wind,” Durgin revealed. “I ended up not going with the leaders because I thought that effort in the wind might be a little too much.

“I felt good honestly all the way through; this is a stepping stone for our Olympic trials in February. Getting that Olympic standard definitely gives you a little more confidence.  This isn’t a Berlin, this isn’t a Chicago, I kind of had to not compare my time to what women ran the past couple of weeks. At the trials I can take little more risk with the confidence this race has given me.”

This year’s TCS Toronto Waterfront Marathon sold out with a record 5,849 entries. Along with the half marathon and the 5km run today, more than 25,000 runners enjoyed the weekend and $3 million was raised for 159 official charities, so many more than just the elite athletes went home happy.

How to get Your Best Post Race Recovery!

By | Athletes | No Comments

By Dr. Britt Moran

How to get your best post race recovery !

It’s true that you can only train as hard as you can recover, and post race recovery is KEY. It’s important to understand that race recovery is not only about recovering from the race itself, but from the entire training cycle, whether you hit your race goals or not.

Once you’ve finished your race, the very first thing you do is celebrate. You did it ! While celebrating, remember to refuel & rehydrate in order to jump start your short term recovery.

Immediately after the race your stomach may be struggling with some “gel induced” gut rot, so it’s vital to get some proper fuel in your system as soon as possible. While your stomach might not be quite ready for more than the complimentary banana and granola bar, you can focus on immediate rehydration with Organika Electrolytes Recovery which helps replenish lost minerals. Once your stomach settles, be sure to take in (mostly) good calories at a regular cadence throughout the rest of the day.

Once you’ve started refueling, do some active stretching to flush out your legs and keep them from getting excessively sore later in the coming days. Check out this video and follow along: https://www.instagram.com/p/Cn7SCmQAysu/. Finally, don’t be afraid to walk around a bit, even if it’s slow. Try to get the blood flowing through the day, your legs will thank you the next morning.

Now in longer term recovery, meaning the days following the race. Here are some things to focus on:

  1.      Fueling → Just because you’re not training for anything does not mean you should start to cut the calories. Your body is still working hard to recover not only from the race, but all the training leading up to it. Organika electrolytes + enhanced collagen is a great way to stay on top of regular fueling.
  2.      Down time →  Here is the thing, when we train we work towards a nice peak and then taper down to perform.  We cannot expect to always be at that peak fitness.  So it is important to come down from that fitness, now you will still get some benefit and start a little bit further ahead than you were the last season. So do not be afraid to take the time off, it is an important part of training. Aim for 10 to 14 days after a Marathon & 7 to 10 days for a Half.
  3.      Ease back into training → After your downtime, do two weeks (minimum) of easy runs only.  This is important physically but also mentally.  We cannot always be so focused towards a singular goal, so it is good to give yourself a mental break as well.  This is the time to run for fun and just enjoy the freedom of running when you want to, not because you have to.
  4.      Reflect → On the race and also the season as a whole. Be honest about your weaknesses and areas for improvement.  Make a plan to address one (or two) of them in the off season.

I promise that taking the time to recover appropriately will pay off in the long run (literally). Embrace the break and enjoy the recovery!

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About Dr. Brittany Moran

Dr. Brittany Moran is a Toronto based chiropractor, run coach & runner.  She works at The Runner’s Academy as a chiropractor and is the founder and head coach of StrideWise Running. In her spare time, Brittany trains for marathons at a sub elite level with a personal best of 2:33.

Social media:

Instagram: @torunningchiro / @stridewiserunning / @therunnersacademy

About Organika:

For over 33 years, Organika has been dedicated to redefining health supplementation, through a diverse array of collagen powders, supplements, superfoods, and hydration products. Ensuring that each product offering resonates harmoniously with individual needs, culminating in enhanced products that seamlessly integrate into daily wellness regimens. Helping all people love living healthy!

Social media and website:

  • Organika.com
  • @organikahealth

2023 TCS TORONTO WATERFRONT MARATHON SEES NEW PODIUM PRESENCE AND RAISES $2.9 MILLION FOR CHARITY

By | Uncategorised | 12 Comments

Elvis Kipchoge Cheboi and Buze Diriba Kejela win 2023 TCS Toronto Waterfront Marathon; First time marathoners Thomas Broatch and Caroline Pomerleau win 2023 Athletics Canada Marathon Championship

TORONTO, ON (October 15, 2023) – More than 25,000 people from across Canada and around the world laced up and hit the pavement today for the 2023 TCS Toronto Waterfront Marathon, Half marathon and 5K. In its 34th edition, the world-renowned marathon celebrated an incredible year of firsts. Four debut marathoners took home champion titles and the event saw record breaking participation. Registration for the main events sold out more than a month ahead of race day, participants hailed from 78 countries, and spectators supported from more cheer sites across the route than ever before. 

“The TCS Toronto Waterfront Marathon has been a staple event for the City of Toronto since it began over 30 years ago, attracting over 25,000 participants annually from across the world,” said Olivia Chow, Mayor of Toronto. “Each year, the marathon brings our city to the world stage, encourages active living in our beautiful outdoor spaces and supports over 150 charities making an impact in Toronto’s communities. Congratulations to all those who ran, walked and wheeled in this year’s events, and thank you to all who have come together across the city to celebrate their achievements.” 

While windy conditions limited chances for records to be shattered, the international and Canadian women’s fields stood out with some unexpected and exciting outcomes. Ethiopian women swept the first four places, with Buze Diriba winning the Women’s Open title by just one second. First time marathoner Caroline Pomerleau also took the lead over Anne-Marie Comeau in the final kilometres to claim the Canadian Championship title. Among the several American women looking to qualify for the US Olympic Trials, Emily Durgin of Arizona came out on top finishing fifth overall in 2:26:46 —.a slender four seconds under the qualifying standard for the Paris Games.

The men showcased their resilience after an over-ambitious first half, with Elvis Kipchoge Cheboi of Kenya claiming the overall title and his own personal best at 2:09:20. Thomas Broatch brought a surprising win as the Canadian Champion in his debut marathon, coming in at 2:16:25 and sixth overall. With an array of joyful faces crossing the finish line, today’s event marked an exhilarating finale to the Canada Running Series.

“TCS is incredibly proud to cheer on our running community at the TCS Toronto Waterfront Marathon,” said Soumen Roy, Executive Director and Country Head, Canada, TCS. “TCS is part of a global running community, and we are honoured to be leading the way to bring innovation and sustainability to the forefront of Canada’s premier running event, and continuing to build on belief together.”  

The marathon has been expanding its global presence, with a record of more than 2,000 international runners participating across all events. This year, the 2023 marathon, half marathon and 5K events had representation from all 13 Canadian provinces and territories, as well as 47 American states. 

“The TCS Toronto Waterfront Marathon has always been about building community and this year was definitely one for the books, arguably the best we’ve ever had” said Alan Brookes, Race Director, TCS Toronto Waterfront Marathon. “We often hear that Toronto is described as the world within a city, and today we truly had the world in this city. With some of the highest energy we’ve ever seen on the course, we’re thrilled that our community pulled through once again this year to run, walk and wheel a combined 549,450 kms, raise an anticipated nearly $3 million for 159 charities, and once again make Toronto proud on the world stage.”

While the in-person event might be finished for the 2023 season, the virtual race can be completed until the end of October and TCS Charity Challenge donations are accepted until November. 13th. For those looking ahead to next year, registration for the 2024 TCS Toronto Waterfront Marathon will open tomorrow, Monday October 16, 2023.

2023 TCS Toronto Waterfront Marathon Results

Open Men

  1. Elvis Kipchoge Cheboi (Kenya), 2:09:20
  2. Adugna Takele Bikila (Ethiopia), 2:10:26
  3. Alfred Kipchirchir Mukche (Kenya), 2:10:56

Open Women

  1. Buze Diriba Kejela (Ethiopia), 2:23:11
  2. Waganesh Mekasha (Ethiopia), 2:23:12
  3. Afera Godfey (Ethiopia), 2:23:15

2023 Athletics Canada Marathon Championship Results

Canadian Men

  1. Thomas Broatch, 2:16:25
  2. Benjamin Raymond, 2:20:15
  3. Sergio Raez Villanueva, 2:20:48

Canadian Women

  1. Caroline Pomerleau, 2:34:44
  2. Anne-Marie Comeau, 2:34:51
  3. Dayna Pidhoresky, 2:35:50

For more highlights and complete race results, please visit: www.torontowaterfrontmarathon.com 

2023 Guiness World Record *Unofficial Results 

*Results to be confirmed by Guinness World Records

  • Fastest Half Marathon run by a married couple (aggregate time):
    Garret Lee and Amy Duba, 2:32:12
  • Fastest half marathon dressed as an elf:
    Melvin Nyairo, 1:15:48
  • Fastest Half Marathon run by three siblings
    Paulo, Fernando and Jose Carvalho, 3:57:02
  • Fastest half marathon dressed as a train engineer (female)
    Bridget Burns, 2:01:23
  • Fastest half marathon in a five person costume
    Dekel Chui, Tom Brooks, Andrew Bondoc, Derek Beaton, Jared Nylander, 1:48:59
  • Fastest Half Marathon dribbling a basketball (male)
    Chi Kit Cheung, 2:03:00
  • Fastest half marathon dressed as a crustacean (female)
    Frances Ferrabee, 2:15:01
  • Fastest Marathon in highland Dress (male)
    Denis Bilyard, 3:20:12
  • Fastest marathon dressed as a mountain climber (male)
    Clodoaldo Pasquini, 3:11:54
  • Fastest marathon dressed in traditional Chinese dress (male)
    Jun Liu, 3:54:35
  • Fastest marathon dribbling a basketball (female)
    Maria Babineau, 3:57:40

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About the TCS Toronto Waterfront Marathon

The TCS Toronto Waterfront Marathon is Canada’s premier running event and the grand finale of the Canada Running Series (CRS). Since 2017, the race has served as the Athletics Canada national marathon championship race and has doubled as the Olympic trials. Using innovation and organization as guiding principles, Canada Running Series stages great experiences for runners of all levels, from Canadian Olympians to recreational and charity runners. With a mission of “building community through the sport of running,” CRS is committed to making sport part of sustainable communities and the city-building process. 

To learn more about the TCS Toronto Waterfront Marathon, visit www.torontowaterfrontmarathon.com

About Tata Consultancy Services (TCS)

Tata Consultancy Services is an IT services, consulting and business solutions organization that has been partnering with many of the world’s largest businesses in their transformation journeys for over 50 years. TCS offers a consulting-led, cognitive powered, integrated portfolio of business, technology and engineering services and solutions. This is delivered through its unique Location Independent Agile™ delivery model, recognized as a benchmark of excellence in software development.

A part of the Tata group, India’s largest multinational business group, TCS has over 614,000 of the world’s best-trained consultants in 55 countries. The company generated consolidated revenues of US $27.9 billion in the fiscal year ended March 31, 2023, and is listed on the BSE (formerly Bombay Stock Exchange) and the NSE (National Stock Exchange) in India. TCS’ proactive stance on climate change and award-winning work with communities across the world have earned it a place in leading sustainability indices such as the MSCI Global Sustainability Index and the FTSE4Good Emerging Index. 

For more information, visit www.tcs.com  

About Canada Running Series (CRS)

Canada Running Series is the nation’s premier running circuit with 7 events, 4 in Toronto, 2 in Vancouver, and 1 in Montreal. It annually attracts over 50,000 participants and raises more than $6 million for some 320 mostly-local charities. The Series includes the World Athletics Gold Label TCS Toronto Waterfront Marathon, and the Athletics Canada National Marathon Championships. Since 1999, CRS has gained international recognition for innovation and organization. To learn more about CRS, visit https://canadarunningseries.com/.

MEDIA CONTACT:

Canada Running Series:

Laurel Bury

media@canadarunningseries.com 

Tata Consultancy Services:

Tiffany Fisher

tiffany.fisher@tcs.com 

Alfred Kipchirchir To Debut at TCS Toronto Waterfront Marathon

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by Paul Gains

TORONTO, ON (October 3, 2023) – Kenya’s Alfred Kipchirchir makes his marathon debut October 15 at the TCS Toronto Waterfront Marathon and he hopes it goes as well as that registered by one of his training partners.

Kipchirchir, 29, trains in a group which includes Vincent Ngetich who chased two-time Olympic champion Eliud Kipchoge along the streets of Berlin last weekend, eventually finishing second in the famed Berlin Marathon in 2:03:13. It was a stunning performance and one that has inspired Kipchirchir.

“I am looking forward to running 2:05 or 2:04 in Toronto,” he reveals. “My training is going well. We run between 180 and 210km in a week.”

According to Coach Peter Bii these two star-athletes trained together right up until the last two weeks with Kipchirchir running step for step with Ngetich. Of course, the latter had to back off training to prepare for the Berlin Marathon.

“I want to debut in Toronto because I like what I have heard about the city from Enock Onchari,” says Kipchirchir. A year ago Onchari, another member of the group, finished 4th in Toronto Waterfront.

“We know it’s very cold (in Toronto) from when Onchari was there. I have no information about the course,” he continues.

Kipchirchir has dipped under 60 minutes for the half marathon distance three times in the past three years with his best 59:43 set in the 2021 Madrid Half Marathon. With his current training going well it is not unreasonable for him to have very high expectations.

All of his life the village of Kapkenu has been his home. It’s about 80 Kilometres from the famed ‘runners’ town’ of Iten. As a young boy he admired the achievements of his neighbour Geoffrey Kamworor who won both the world half marathon and world cross country championships three times and was twice winner of the New York City Marathon. But it was a family member who pushed him to become a runner in his youth.

“My brother introduced me to running. He works as the manager of the High Altitude Training Centre run by Lorna Kiplagat in Iten,” he reveals.

Like many Kenyan athletes he leaves home every Monday morning and travels to the group’s training camp where he will remain until the following Saturday. He doesn’t own a car and relies upon a ‘matatu’, a publicly shared minibus. Sometimes his brother will drive him though. It’s a sacrifice he is prepared to make to ensure he achieves his running potential.

At the training camp there is much camaraderie. The shared sense of commitment and sacrifice he finds builds mental fortitude which he hopes to translate into a superb performance in Toronto. But there is also time to relax.

“I like to listen to music, Kalenjin (tribal) songs, when I am home and at camp,” he says. “And I watch football. I am a Manchester United supporter.”

Both he and Coach Peter laugh heartily when the interviewer shakes his head at the current disruption at the club. Among the group there are Tottenham Hotspur, Chelsea and Manchester City fans also says Peter.

Earnings from Kipchirchir’s running career have helped him take care of his immediate family, his wife Rhoda Jepkemboi Mukche and his 14-month-old daughter Praise Jepkorir.

“I have already bought a small farm,” he says. “It’s two acres. I grow maize and I have goats. My family members are at my home and they look after the farm when I am away at camp.”

The TCS Toronto Waterfront Marathon course record is 2:05:00 held by Philemon Rono since 2019. On that occasion three runners came home within thirteen seconds of Rono, once again demonstrating fast times can be achieved here.

The transition to the marathon sometimes proves difficult for even some of the best distance runners in the world. But something in his preparation and attitude reveals Kipchirchir will have a memorable debut in Toronto.

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Elvis Cheboi Carries Kenyan Hopes at TCS Toronto Waterfront Marathon

By | Athletes | One Comment

by Paul Gains

TORONTO, ON (September 19, 2023) – Although he may not have the fastest personal best time in the field Kenya’s Elvis Cheboi will certainly be a contender when the 2023 TCS Toronto Waterfront Marathon gets underway October 15th.

The 27-year-old made his debut at the Vienna Marathon April 23rd and after running with the leaders through the first half in 62:44 he struggled home in 7th place with a time of 2:10:21. The result left him wondering if he would ever put himself through such torture again.

“It was tough but I accepted it,” he says with a smile during a video call from Iten, Kenya. “You see, it was my first attempt so I can say I tried my best.

“After I finished I felt like I would never again run the marathon. My body was feeling pain. My coach Gabriele (Nicola) helped me and encouraged me with a lot of wisdom and said ‘don’t give up you will do it one day’.”

At this point coach Nicola, who is sitting with him in the lobby of Kerio View Hotel listening in, interjects pointing out that five months before Vienna his charge had recorded a personal best half marathon time of 59:15 to finish 3rd at the Barcelona Half Marathon. That’s ten seconds faster than world marathon record holder Eliud Kipchoge has ever run. Unfortunately, when Cheboi returned to Iten following that splendid result it was with a slight injury.

The pair had expected he was capable of running 2:06 or 2:07 in Vienna. Indeed the race was won in 2:05:08 by his countryman Samwel Mailu.

“This time we started preparation for Toronto in June,” Nicola reveals. “Immediately his body started to react the way it reacted when he ran 59:15 for the half marathon in 2022.

“Now he is building the shape. It’s not hard to imagine him running sub 2:06. He will be ready to run well. How well? We will see on the streets of Toronto.”

Cheboi trains with the Demadonna Athletic group in Iten. Among the 35 athletes that train with Nicola about a dozen stay at the Kerio View Hotel through the week but Cheboi isn’t one of them. That’s because he and his wife, Ruth Korir, have two very young children – a daughter named Sharline Jerotich, 5, and a 1-year-old son, Shalom Kiplagat.

Their house is about five kilometres from the training centre and sits on some land they own.

“When I am done with training, like this evening, I play with my children and also teach my girl, who is now in school, how to do her homework,” he says. “I help her with education.

“At night I usually watch television mostly CNN. My favourite is CNN and maybe National Geographic. There are so many animals on that channel.”

Like many professional runners in East Africa he is using his earnings from running to prepare for his family’s future.

“Back at my home I also farm,” he says with a smile. “I have animals and also plant maize, potatoes and wheat. This year I have cows, sheep and goats and also I planted some wheat and maize. You know, here in Kenya we like maize because of Ugali.”

Ugali, of course, is a staple on the tables at homes in Kenya and served often with beef stew.

Among those he trains with are two world class marathoners in Joshua Belet who ran 2:04:33 in the 2023 Hamburg Marathon and Kiprono Kipkemoi who was second at Toronto Waterfront Marathon last year.

“I don’t know much about Toronto but I asked Kiprono about Toronto but he didn’t tell me much yet,” he says. “But I will meet with him again about it.”

Among Nicola’s female athletes is Magdalyne Masai who set a Toronto Waterfront Marathon course record of 2:22:16 in 2019. The coach has arranged a meeting with her so Cheboi can gain more insight into the course and all its features.

Cheboi is still a bit of a novice at the marathon but in training Nicola has ensured he becomes comfortable with taking drinks on the run. The coach will ride in a minibus with bottles for all the athletes training. Every five kilometres they hand the bottles to them.

“It’s not exactly like a refreshment station but you learn to drink on the run,” Nicola explains. “Secondly you will know how to grab a bottle and not lose time during the race.”

Unusual for a Kenyan runner when asked whose performances inspired him when he was starting out as a runner Cheboi answers ‘Kenenisa Bekele,’ the Ethiopian superstar who won three Olympic gold medals and held the world 5,000m and 10,000m records until 2020.

“I can say I love Bekele. The way he ran and also from his background of running until now,” he admits although he has never met his idol.

“I encouraged myself. How Bekele runs his performances from way back you see he ran very well.”

These days there is much respect for Uganda’s Joshua Cheptegei who broke both of Bekele’s records on the track and won his third consecutive world 10,000m title in Eugene last month. Cheboi remembers an encounter he had with the latest African superstar.

“I remember the world junior championships in Eugene (2014),” he says, recalling he was leading the 10,000m race with two hundred metres remaining before Cheptegei chased him down. “He overtook me 150 metres before the finish. I remember.”

He smiles at the memory. Asked if he would like to race him again he laughs and says ‘yes’.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

The TCS Toronto Waterfront Marathon is once again a World Athletics Elite Label race and as such will have a very strong field. It’s a chance for athletes on the world stage to earn prize money. Moreover, it’s a chance for Elvis Cheboi to show he is a world class marathoner.

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Thomas Broatch Makes Marathon Debut at TCS Toronto Waterfront Marathon 

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by Paul Gains  

TORONTO, ON (September 12, 2023) – Runners across the globe are lured by the spectacle of the marathon and it’s no different for Vancouver’s Thomas Broatch who will mark his debut at the TCS Toronto Waterfront Marathon on October 15. 

The former University of British Columbia runner works full time as a software engineer while managing to implement a training program to get the best out of him. 

This commitment to training rewarded him with a personal best of 1:04:09 at the Monterey Half Marathon in California last year and, more recently, a third-place finish at the 2023 First Half Vancouver Half Marathon (1:04:23). He has also raced on the track frequently at distances from 1,500m to 10,000m.  

“As a runner I want to do all the distances,” the 24-year-old explains. “In training I like the long runs – especially as I have gotten older. I have enjoyed that type of training and injury-wise I have been in a really good spot. I was already running a lot to train for the 10k and half marathon so I didn’t feel like moving up to the marathon would be too risky or too big of a jump.” 

Whether this is the start of a marathon career or not depends largely on how Toronto Waterfront goes.  

“If the race goes well – and I enjoy the experience – definitely doing more marathons down the line would be an option,” he continues. “At the same time, I really do like the 10k and half marathon and the good thing about those is you can do more of them in a year. I will still have the option of dropping down in distance after this race. 

“For the 10k I was already doing 170km a week or so. We bumped that up to 180km – a bit of an increase.  I have just added the long runs. I would do more 30km to 35km long runs and now I am doing more 35k to 40k. Overall it hasn’t been too big a change.” 

These days Broatch trains with the Vancouver Thunderbirds Club under the tutelage of Chris Johnson. The pair have known each other since Broatch ran track at Point Grey High School, a school which counts comedian Seth Rogen as an alumnus. Occasionally he would jump in workouts with the club and then both, by some good fortune, wound up at UBC and then the ‘Thunderbirds’. This consistency of coaching can’t be understated. 

The training group however is not marathon oriented which doesn’t seem to bother Broatch. 

Among his occasional training partners are Evan Elder, a New Zealander who moved to British Columbia for studies, and John Gay, who represented Canada at the 2022 Commonwealth Games where he was 4th in the 3,000m steeplechase. Their devotion to athletics has left a mark on Broatch. But he seems particularly inspired by Cam Levins who first set a Canadian record at Toronto Waterfront Marathon back in 2018 and went on to run 2:05:36 – a North American record in 2022. 

“For inspiration definitely Cam Levins; he’s a Canadian and from the same province,” Broatch declares. “I don’t think 2:05 is in my talent range but he is definitely an inspiration, seeing how competitive he is on the international stage.” 

The pair met for the first time at the Canadian10k championships in Ottawa this past May.  

Although he works from home he says he likes to train at the same time each day managing his time appropriately. Clearly he is pleased to call Vancouver home. 

“For leisure, these past couple of years I have been getting into golf during the summer,” he responds when asked how he spends down time. “I played some full course golf which is maybe too long for me but the shorter courses I find are a really great way to spend an afternoon. That’s pretty fun. 

“Vancouver is also a great place to go for casual bike rides. Great weather, and I am mostly hanging out with friends on the beach. I was born in Vancouver and spent pretty much all my life here.” 

As the field comes together he is aware that Canadian championship medals are on the line – in addition to $8,000 to the first Canadian – and this is another attractive feature of the race. 

“Oh yeah for sure. I like to race the national championships as much as possible especially since I know most of the Canadian runners,” he admits. “I actually do not know who is racing.  I would definitely like to be on the podium.” 

With the unfortunate and recent withdrawal of Tristan Woodbine due to injury the men’s race appears wide open, but that can certainly change in coming weeks. Regardless, the TCS Toronto Waterfront Marathon is a pivotal point in Thomas Broatch’s career. 

“This race will decide what the rest of my running career will look like,” he says. “I think either trying to run some more marathons or also I’d like to bring my 10k and half marathon times down. It’s mostly whether I still enjoy the sport.” 

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Afera Godfay Confident of Success At TCS Toronto Waterfront Marathon   

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by Paul Gains 

TORONTO, ON (September 26, 2023) – Afera Godfay won the 2019 Dongying Marathon in China with a superb personal best 2:22:41 then almost completely vanished from the world scene for a few years.  

There was a third-place finish in the Xiamen Marathon, also in China, a year later but that performance largely went under the radar. 

On October 15th the 31-year-old Ethiopian will target the TCS Toronto Waterfront Marathon with high expectations. Indeed, in April this year she ran 1:10:25 at the Rabat International Half Marathon in Morocco which encouraged her to chase a new marathon personal best in Toronto. This will mark her first ever visit to Canada. 

“Training is going great,” she reports. “I do my training six days a week – every day except Sunday. I cover a long distance with speed. Three days a week I run with (coach Gemedu Dedefo’s) group. 

“My goal is to win (Toronto Waterfront) with a good time. I hope to run 2:24.” 

The group is currently celebrating the great success of one of their members, Tigist Assefa, who smashed the world marathon record with her astonishing 2:11:53 in Berlin on Sunday.  No doubt the result will provide inspiration to Afera. 

The buildup is creating excitement as she is eager to return to her past level. Five times she has run under 1:10 for the half marathon distance over the years and she can now sense she is coming into form. Afera has a good reason for her absence those few years. 

“It was because I gave birth to my child,” she explains. “And it was a bit hard to get back to my previous condition. I have one child and her name is Maranata.” 

Afera comes from a small town in the war torn northern Ethiopian province of Tigray called Alaje. Although she moved to Addis in 2010 her parents still live in Tigray. She is thankful that they were not affected by the two-year-old war that lasted until November 2022 and which led to widespread famine.  

Once a year, when her training program allows, she will visit her parents and friends in Alaje. She comes from a long line of farmers. Growing up under hardship likely fuelled her desire for success in road racing. But she also had mentors. 

“My inspiration is Meseret Defar,” she declares. Defar is a two time Olympic 5,000m champion and a national hero in Ethiopia. 

As a young athlete Afera had success at shorter distances and represented Ethiopia at the 2010 World Cross Country Championships. She finished a solid 8th in the Under 20 race in Bydgoszcz, Poland helping the Ethiopian team to a silver medal finish behind Kenya. 

Two years later she again represented her country at the African Championships over 10,000m. She placed 7th in that meet which was held in Porto Novo, the capital of Benin. Asked why she turned to marathon racing her answer is simple: ““It’s because I have a good endurance and, money-wise, I find it better.” 

Although she has not been to Toronto before coach Gemedu Dedefo made the journey a few years ago and will undoubtedly have some excellent insight into how best to race the course. And, travelling with her from Addis will be previously announced Ethiopian stars Derara Hurisa, Adugna Takele, and Yohans Mekasha who will feature strongly in the men’s race while  Waganesh Mekasha will battle with Afera for the $20,000 first place prize money.   

Once again, the TCS Toronto Waterfront Marathon promises a memorable contest and the Ethiopian flag will surely be waved in celebration at the finish. 

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Running Newcomer Samantha Jory to Race TCS Toronto Waterfront Marathon   

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by Paul Gains  

TORONTO, ON (September 28, 2023) – Meteoric is one way to describe the rise of Samantha Jory’s running career which has already resulted in a bronze medal at the 2023 Canadian Half Marathon Championship. 

The 28-year-old from Duncan, British Columbia has raced competitively for a little over a year and announced herself locally with a shock victory at the 2022 Vancouver Half Marathon. More than a few bewildered onlookers asked ‘Who was that?”  

Her story makes a compelling read as she prepares herself for the TCS Toronto Waterfront Marathon on October 15.  

“I think, based on my training, if I have a really good day I could probably run a 2:36. I hope,” Jory offers. “Anywhere around 2:37 I would be happy with.  I don’t think about placement as I am going to be more focused on executing the race properly.” 

Remarkably her first ever race was the 2022 Vancouver Marathon where she finished 6th in 2:50:22. Nothing spectacular but not bad for someone with little proper training. Indeed, her running only began during the pandemic when she was unable to access her membership at a Vancouver Gold’s gym. 

“I needed some outlet for my stress and my energy levels and I just thought I will do what everybody else is doing and that was running,” she explains. “I didn’t have the money at the time for a bike.  

“I’d run recreationally, maybe 20 kilometres a week, a handful of times so I thought I would start with a few 5km races. After a few months I ran my first 10k and thought that was the biggest accomplishment ever. It felt like such a long way. Certainly, it is an accomplishment.” 

Jory laughs at the memory. Some friends introduced her to Strava and then she began comparing her times and pace to others. 

One day while out on a tempo run in Vancouver’s Stanley Park she crossed paths with Canadian marathon record holder, Natasha Wodak, who called out to her.  A short while later Wodak contacted Jory on Instagram and the two became friends.  Wodak calls her ‘super talented’ and has been writing a marathon training program for her the past few months. 

“Natasha agreed to help me for this (Toronto Waterfront) marathon which is really special for me,” Jory admits. “She has been really supportive. I probably do a little bit more than what she prescribes in terms of distance in a week – I am not really diligent with my rest days. But she doesn’t have to know this.” 

Again Jory laughs. In order to get in her roughly 130 kilometres a week she must sometimes rise at 4:00 a.m. in order to get in a morning run.  With a Master’s degree in Health Leadership and Policy she is often ‘on call’ in her capacity as an organ donation specialist with BC Transplant. It’s a stressful job. 

“It involves meeting with families and going over consent,” she reveals, “helping the Intensive Care Unit work with the patient up to becoming a donor in terms of diagnosis and blood work, then doing all the recipient matching and organizing the operating room with the recipients, with the surgeons, with the family involved. So it’s a lot of organizational work. 

“I am part-time with this team right now. When I am on call I am on call for the whole province so it can be really long days and really long nights when we have multiple cases on the go.” 

Jory studied nursing at the University of Alberta where she also played rugby for the varsity team. Having played high school rugby and earning a spot on the BC provincial team she received a small scholarship to play for the ‘Pandas’ club.  In her first year she was a member of the team that beat the University of Guelph to win the 2013 Canadian Interuniversity Sport (now U-Sports) championship. 

“Yes we did win CIS my first year,” she says showing her excitement. “I actually got to start because one of our senior players was injured. So I played the whole game which was special for me as a rookie.” 

After graduating in 2017 she remained in Edmonton for almost three years working in the Cardiovascular Surgery Intensive Care Unit at the Mazankowski Heart Institute. She admits the circumstances she encountered were sometimes intolerable. How did she cope? 

“A lot of debriefing with colleagues,” she remembers, “and their camaraderie helps a lot. And some therapy here and there but mostly it’s something you just become accustomed to, unfortunately.” 

Backed by the Canadian record holder and with a consistent training program these past few months Jory’s build has been going well.  

Last weekend in the midst of her marathon training she finished 3rd in the Under Armour Eastside 10km (34:42) twenty-seven seconds behind two-time Canadian Olympian Andrea Seccafien.  Will a new Canadian marathon star show herself on the streets of Toronto? Her story just gets better. 

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Olympian Anne-Marie Comeau Pursuing a Fast Time at TCS Toronto Waterfront Marathon

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by Paul Gains 

TORONTO, ON (October 3, 2023) – Five years have passed since Anne Marie Comeau represented Canada at the 2018 Winter Olympics and now she has returned to her first passion, running.  

On October 15th the 27-year-old from St. Ferréol les Neiges in Quebec will race the TCS Toronto Waterfront Marathon, her first competitive marathon since her inauspicious debut in Philadelphia in 2019.   

This time around the former cross-country skier will come prepared having followed the program set by her new coach, two-time Canadian Olympic marathoner, Reid Coolsaet. The two paired up in November 2022. Coolsaet has developed both her physical and mental preparation and Comeau has a specific goal in mind. 

“I talked to Reid last week,” she reveals. “My first goal is to go under 2:32. But he told me if I want to take risks in my race I should try to do 2:29:30 or just under 2:30. He told me it’s a big risk to start at this pace but I like to take risks.” 

Once again, the race will serve as the Athletics Canada Canadian Marathon Championships with medals and a lucrative prize purse including $8,000 to the national champion. Comeau is more cautious. 

“For sure I will be happy if I am finishing on the podium,” she says. “But I don’t think about it. I don’t have a lot of experience in marathon races. I would just like to do another marathon because the last one was in 2019. 

“It’s a ‘couple’ of years so I want to start back doing one and see how I can fuel correctly in the race. Because my first one – it was very bad nutrition. I will give all that I have. I have done a lot of work. I am excited to see what it can give.” 

Comeau laughs at her recall of that Philadelphia race, a 2:41:10. But in March of this year she showed that her training is going well as she finished second at the Project 13.1 (Half Marathon) in New York’s Rockland State Park. Her time of 1:11:30 indicates that with the right volume of training she is certainly capable of dipping under the 2:30 marathon barrier.  

More recently she won the half marathon at the Marathon Beneva de Montreal in 1:13:56. That result came during her buildup for Toronto Waterfront. She did not back off her training one bit. 

“I am not a person that does a lot of high mileage,” she reveals. “My biggest week with the training in the marathon buildup was 155km. It was mostly about 130km a week. I also use other sports in preparation. 

“I am not competing anymore in cross-country skiing. But I am doing a lot of cross- country skiing in the winter and a lot of skiing up mountains but I don’t do competition anymore.” 

Cycling with her boyfriend Jean-Philippe also has a place in her overall fitness. And she is also an accomplished mountain and trail runner. Last March she represented Canada at the World Mountain and Trail Running Championships finishing 15th in the women’s vertical race and 17th in the ‘up and down’ race. 

“I always loved running,” Comeau admits with a laugh. “I was running for training (for cross-country skiing). The two sports work very well together and since the age of 8 years I was running races in the woods. When I was a skier I was always running in the summer and even in the winter.  

“I wanted to try and see what my potential was in running. When I was skiing it was not perfect for running. So when I stopped I was able to concentrate my energy and see what I can do. 

For income Comeau works as an accountant for a medium size firm while studying to become a tax specialist. Recently she left a major accounting firm so she could cut back on her hours to devote more time to training and recovery. 

In her down time she says she enjoys going for bike rides and also pursuing a more relaxing pastime. 

“My boyfriend (national team trail runner) Jean-Philippe Thibobeau and I like to explore breweries,” she says with a laugh. “We love this activity and when we travel we try to choose different breweries and match our trip with that.” 

Comeau is eager to line up at Toronto Waterfront and for the first time really see what she is capable at the marathon distance. A surprise could be in store.  

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