Sep 23 2019
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Kinsey Middleton: Strong and Free

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Dual-citizen and defending Canadian marathon champion embraces the maple leaf, and hopes to don it in Tokyo

Kinsey Middleton earned her red and white stripes when she broke away from competition at last year’s Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon, stopped the clock at 2:32:09, and earned the national crown. It was a first Canadian title for the then-25-year-old, in her debut in the race distance.

Middleton threw down nearly perfect splits and crossed the finish line with relative ease, after notoriously exclaiming “This is so much fun!” near the 16K marker while running alongside Leslie Sexton and pacer Natasha Wodak. Murphy’s Law, which especially holds true for young, first-time marathoners, clearly did not apply to the Boise, Idaho native.

“I have been dreaming of being an Olympian since I was in kindergarten.”

That was the beauty of Middleton’s 2018 performance: it seemed effortless, her step up to the marathon almost serendipitous (barely a year prior, she focused on the 1,500m.) But the honeymoon is over now, judgment day is approaching, and the stakes at this year’s Toronto Waterfront Marathon are higher than ever. Not only does Middleton have a title to defend, she gets to chase a long-time dream: Tokyo.

“I have been dreaming of being an Olympian since I was in kindergarten,” says Middleton, from her home in Boise, “and I knew at a really young age I could choose the country for which I would try to compete.”

Middleton has never lived in Canada, but she represented the country for the first time at the 2018 IAAF World Half-Marathon Championships. Her grandmother currently lives in Guelph, and her grandfather in Nova Scotia. This fall, Middleton is eager to show her nation of heritage to her husband for the first time, a nation for which she grows fonder every year.

“As soon as I made the decision that I wanted to run for Canada,” she says, “it feels like home every time I go. Even though I don’t live there, I feel such a sense of pride. Representing Canada internationally would be my dream come true.”

To make that happen, the Oregon State and Idaho graduate plans on showing up in Toronto and the marathon trials more prepared than ever: she has ramped up her training, adjusted her lifestyle… and made sure to brush up on her Canadian trivia (more on that later).

The training

“Physically, I feel different this year than last. I am averaging around 120 miles (roughly 195km) and my highest week has been around 130 (roughly 210 km.) It’s hard because you want to play the comparison game. My coach has made the workouts harder this year, so that I don’t get caught comparing. A big test effort we will do a few weeks out is 7 x 5km at marathon pace. Last year, I ran that workout at the exact same pace as I did the marathon, so I think it will be a great indicator of what’s possible.

Mentally, I think just having the experience, I’m going in knowing what to expect. Sure, the pressure is greater for having won last year, and the field is more stacked this year because it’s the (Olympic) trials, but I think I know better what I can accomplish this year. Last year, my coach did such a good job telling me “this is your first marathon, it is not going to be your best marathon.” So, now, I’m nervous, but excited for the next ones.”

The lifestyle

“I used to train full time, and wanted to balance it with something. After the (Canadian trials) marathon last year, I started working at a holistic medicine office in Idaho. I used to work at the office, but it was hard to balance with running. I felt like I had to do it all. So I asked my employers if I could work from home, and they were so supportive. They said “we really want to have an Olympian working here!” So I manage to balance work and running. This year, my routine looks like this:

  • Wake up at 6:30 a.m.
  • A.M. run with my team (Idaho Distance Project)
  • Strength work at the gym for an hour
  • Work from home (also try to fit a nap in on the big mileage days)
  • P.M.: shakeout run around my neighbourhood trails
  • Make dinner—I love cooking big healthy meals so I have leftovers for lunches.
  • Walk my pups (Hank and Duke) with my husband in the park behind our house
  • Bedtime around 9 p.m.

I think I wasn’t doing as many of the “little things” in last year’s marathon build up. Specifically, I wasn’t doing the gym or strength work, which has made a big difference this time around. Also, taking the time to nap and rest is more of a priority this build up as well.

The Canada Quiz

Middleton says she still gets (friendly) flack from some of her competitors for being born and living across the border. So, we gave her the chance to prove her Canadian-ness by giving her a pop quiz.


 Who is Canada’s Prime minister?

Justin Trudeau (1 point)

Canada’s official animal

Not the Canadian goose… oh! The moose! (0 points – Correct Answer: Beaver)

What is the name of a one-dollar coin?

The Loonie! (1 point)

Name the Canadian who invented Basketball?

I don’t know… but that’s because I know nothing about basketball! (0 points – Correct Answer – James Naismith)

What is Canada’s national sport?

Curling… no! No, I know this: lacrosse! I knew it wasn’t hockey. (1 point)

Name of the person who invented the telephone

Bell, that was his last name (accepted – Alexander Graham Bell – 1 point)

Name of current Canadian marathon record holders?

Easy. Cam (Levins) and Rachel (Cliff) *bonus marks for being on first name basis with the record holders (1.5 points)

Number of provinces and territories?

Well, I could name you the provinces. Then there are two territories. Yukon and North West Territories. (0.5 points – Correct Answer, three territories)

Capital of Canada?

Ottawa (1 point)

 

(Photo by Pete Staples/USTA)

Name of the first Canadian to win a grand slam tennis title?

Bianca! (1 point)

Score:

8 out of 10 – Maple syrup in her veins!

Sep 22 2019
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Why Virginia Lee has run every single edition of the Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon

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By Ravi Singh

In 2013, Virignia Lee was accepted into the Chicago Marathon via lottery. Given that Chicago is traditionally run a week or two before the Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon, Virginia figured it was best to skip her hometown race.

That changed when the team at Canada Running Series informed her that, along with run streak legend Rick Rayman, Virginia was the only runner to have run every single edition of the event.

From that point, Virginia, a full-time personal trainer and fitness professional who divides her time between Toronto and Miami, has been fiercely protective of her distinction, going to any length to make sure she’s at the start line every October.

Virginia will keep her streak going this year as part of her goal of running 50 marathons by age 50. The 2019 Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon will be #47.

Why her record matters

“I know I don’t look like the typical marathoner or the kind of person who would hold any kind of marathon record. I want people to see that even if you don’t fit the stereotype of a hardcore runner, it can still be done. I like that the Toronto Waterfront Marathon has given me this recognition and that I can be a representative of Toronto’s diversity in running.

You also hear that the older you get, the more you’ll get injured, but I want to show that it’s not true.”

“Another big difference was that instead of a timing chip in your bib, you ran with a velcro strap around your ankle.”

What’s changed

“The first year, CRS had a table at the Sporting Life store near Yonge and Lawrence where I filled out a form in-person. I’m pretty sure I also paid cash.

I can remember at my second time participating, there were only a few hundred of us running. I didn’t want to sign up too early and risk not being able to run because of injury, but back then I was able to register in-person on race day and collect my kit. Another big difference was that instead of a timing chip in your bib, you ran with a velcro strap around your ankle.

I’ve collected over 20 Waterfront Marathon shirts, most of which I gave to my mother-in-law. In those years, the shirts didn’t have a unique design like they do now. But I loved the shirt from my second Toronto Waterfront Marathon, which was the only one that was primarily cotton.”

What she’s risked

“Maybe it’s selfish, but last year I missed a friend’s wedding for the marathon. Most of my closest friends and family have come to accept that I think of this as my race and they don’t question it.

Two years ago, I ran even though I was strongly advised not to. I sprained my ankle and had to DNF a race that was meant to be a tune up. I did physio and tried to recover as much as possible, but still had to go super slow and was definitely not 100%. After the marathon, there was no racing for the rest of the fall and following spring.”

Virginia’s tips for longevity

“It took a long time for me to consider myself a runner. Running was always a small part of what I did, but I was definitely always a gym rat and that’s probably what’s kept me running for so long. Every runner should weight train and cross train.”

Jun 24 2019
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Cam Levins Has 3 Big Goals for the 2019 Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon

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Cameron Levins is sitting at the head of the table, relaxed.

The Canadian marathon record holder is jointed by a small group of journalists for an informal luncheon in downtown Toronto after running the Lululemon Toronto 10k a couple days earlier. Everyone at the table introduces themselves, and Levins takes the final turn. He hesitates and then says, “Well, I’m Cameron Levins, and… you’re here because of me.” Everyone laughs, and not because they feel they are supposed to, but because no one expected Levins to be so forthright, and, quite frankly, funny. He gets right down to business after his awkward-turned-charming self-introduction. His real reason for being at the front of the table: that he will be returning to Toronto this fall for the marathon, and that he has a bold goal in mind.

The 30-year-old has come a long way in what has already been a career filled with perhaps the most extreme highs, and lows, of any Canadian distance runner in history. In 2012, the unheralded kid from Black Creek, B.C. single-handedly put Southern Utah University on the NCAA map, winning a pair of track championships, and doing legendarily massive mileage in the process. Levins became a folk hero to running nerds by crushing 300+ km weeks, and then legitimized his talent by making the Canadian Olympic team, doubling in the 5,000m and 10,000m in London. He finished a promising 11th overall in the longer event. It seemed like Levins was destined for greatness on the track.

Levins with Canada Running Series head Alan Brookes

He was then invited to join Nike’s Oregon Project, considered perhaps the most prestigious training group in the world, training along side Galen Rupp and Mo Farah. After a few rocky years in Portland, Levins didn’t qualify for the 2016 Olympics, and was left with a destroyed foot, needing significant surgery to repair the damage. “I didn’t know if I would ever run again in a meaningful way,” Levins now admits. Nike moved on from him, yet he decided to remain in Oregon, and return to his university coach, doing periodic training camps at altitude in Utah. Many in the room wouldn’t admit it, but they probably had Cam Levins written off after his fall from greatness. The same worshippers of Levins legendary triple days (he still does them) and marathons-in-training, now turned to the LetsRun.com message boards to declare Levins washed up, before ever getting the chance to try his fitness out in a real marathon.

Levins digs into a burger. He ordered it with fries and not the optional house salad, as he’s about to embark on another extremely high-volume season of marathon training. Two days prior, he competed in the Lululemon 10K, which features a chunk of the marathon course. He refers to the 10K as a “rust buster” and seems un-phased that he placed fifth against competition he should be able to easily beat (Levins once held the 10,000m national record), and that it “didn’t feel easy.” But this is a different Cameron Levins. He is the marathon record holder, and, perhaps more importantly, he has found his way back to running on his terms.

Levins being interviewed by journalist Ben Kaplan

Levins’ fall from what could have been the apex of his career began in 2015, with a disappointing Pan Am Games performance, coincidentally, also in Toronto. From there, he began to have serious foot issues, that he at first ignored. Finally, after failing to make the Rio team, having a surgery that left a screw in his foot, and then getting dropped by Nike, he was forced to face himself in a manner he now admits helped him become a better runner, and possibly a better person. “I’d put everything in my entire life into becoming what I was, and I then had to accept that my identity might be taken away from me.” At home in Portland, and without a clear future in the only thing he ever wanted to do, Levins had to rebuild himself, and start thinking about what life could be like beyond running. At first, a terrifying prospect, and then a freeing one.

Levins says that search and self-discovery—and not the comeback or the jaw-dropping marathon debut (2:09:25 and a definitive new national record)—is what has redefined him and his new-found ability to run with freedom and confidence, regardless of the particular outcome of one race. There is both a grace and a calm to Levins today, as he chats with a journalist about buying a new home in Portland with his wife, and settling in for another season of that legendary training (he still likes to triple, and still piles on massive weeks, now with lots of marathon pace effort). That comfort was on display last October, when Levins first followed a pacer, then took control of his race solo in the latter stages, patiently dolling out increased levels of intensity as he ran down Jerome Drayton’s 43-year-old record.

When asked about his plans for his second marathon, this fall on the streets of Toronto, he pauses and muses for a moment. Yes, he acknowledges that he plans on using the fact that it’s a key qualifying race for Tokyo in order to get back to the Olympics, this time as a marathoner. And he also feels he can lower his own national record. But there is something else. “I’m feeling way better than I was a year ago going into marathon training,” he laughs. “This time in Toronto, I’d like to be right there towards the end of the race, in a position to go for the overall win. I want to see if I can win Toronto. That would be special.”

May 03 2019
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A bold new vision for the Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon

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This year, we are celebrating the 30th anniversary of the Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon. A part of why the race has not only endured but thrived is because it has grown and changed with the running community.

We are going to make this year’s marathon something truly special, and that begins with a bold new look.

We’re proud to unveil the new Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon identity. We’ve created a new logo, tagline and standalone social media accounts, which will focus on telling your stories as you prepare for this year’s race weekend. You can find them all right here in the coming days, weeks and months leading up to Oct. 20.

“There is no other sport where the first timer stands amongst the world’s best. They stand as equals on a level playing field.”

We’ve teamed with Origin, the Whistler/Montreal-based agency that specializes in outdoor sports to create a representation of both the marathon’s identity and what it means to bring together thousands of runners to celebrate what we do in Toronto each October.

First of all, we were super excited about this project,” says Isabelle Philippe, the lead designer on the project. “There is no other sport where the first timer stands amongst the world’s best. They stand as equals on a level playing field. We’re going to draw on the essence of the race, the inner fire it sparks in its participants, and the significance it has to Toronto.”

“We resonated with this idea that for those running, this is our city, but it’s the moment that belongs to each and every participant.”

Philippe, along with Origin teammate Lenka Prochazka, focused on a refresh that would be fun, avoid the cliches of many running logos and stand out as representative of the event, the running community and the city.

Celebrating a diverse city and running community

“When you look at it, you see the flow of the “T.O.” lettering,” says race director and founder Alan Brookes. “It represents the flow of how and why people run, of collective movement—how the running community has grown by embracing many different types of people.” Brookes points out that when they moved the course to encompass much of the waterfront in 2000 (and thus taking on its namesake), they knew that the city would evolve down to the lakeshore.

In 2018, the marathon drew runners from 76 countries, and was livestreamed in 146 countries. “I’m not sure if there’s another event in the city that puts Toronto on the world stage to that extent,” says Brookes.

The running community has changed immensely over the past 30 years. The race consciously worked to stay relevant, both to the shifts in what the race experience can be, but also to the community. Our new tagline, “Our Place, Your Moment” and its corresponding hashtag #ItsYourMoment reflects this. “We resonated with this idea that for those running, this is our city, but it’s the moment that belongs to each and every participant,” says the Origin team. “A moment months in the making. A moment shared with 25,000 others on the same path of self-discovery.”

“We are runners which is why this was such a good fit for us at Origin,” says Philippe. “Two of us ran a half-marathon together last fall in Montreal and experienced the joy of training together, running together as colleagues and sharing in the highs and lows of those moments. We also felt really connected to our city in that race. We saw parts of it that we’d only ever driven through, we saw the power of the cheer stations to keep us going when the muscles hurt, we felt the importance of the branding as a pride factor in wearing the T-shirt post race.”

A new social identity for the Marathon

For the first time, the Scotiabank Waterfront Marathon will have its very own standalone Twitter, Facebook and Instagram presence as well.

Be sure to follow @TOWaterfront42K as we tell your story in the lead up to race weekend this October:

INSTAGRAM

TWITTER

FACEBOOK