Series News

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Reid Coolsaet and Lanni Marchant take convincing wins in Scotiabank Vancouver Half-marathon

Reid Coolsaet and Lanni Marchant both cruised to comfortable wins on a hot morning at the 17th annual Scotiabank Vancouver Half-marathon, in 65:40 and 71:08, respectively. Temperatures were between 20 and 25 celsius under bright blue, sunny skies for the 4,400 runners who took off from UBC to run the 21k down to Stanley Park, along the Pacific shores, in one of the world’s most-scenic urban road races. Another 2,150 ran the accompanying 5K that was held entirely within the park, around Lost Lagoon and the stunning Stanley Park Seawall. Combined, the 6,500 participants were drawn from 8 Canadian provinces and 29 countries. …more at Canada Running Series

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Stephens-Whale edges Haraguchi by tenth of a second in thrilling sprint to win 38th BMO April Fool’s Run

In a full-out, no-holds-barred sprint to the wire, Roberts Creek’s Shaun Stephens-Whale finished in what looked like a dead heat with Vancouver’s Takanori ‘Tsunami’ Haraguchi, at the 2015 BMO Sunshine Coast April Fool’s Run. Both recorded 1:10:15. Electronic timing confirmed what was visually evident to those with the right viewing angle, giving the victory to Stephens-Whale.
Langley’s Lisa Brooking led the women’s field in 7th position overall. She was well pleased with her 1:18:42 clocking, her fastest time on this course by several minutes, and only a minute off her half marathon personal best. This was Brooking’s third victory at the Fool’s Run since 2012. …more at foolsrun.com

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Kelly Wiebe, Lanni Marchant win Modo Spring Run-Off 8K

Kelly Wiebe and Lanni Marchant recorded impressive victories ahead of a record-sized crowd of almost 1,300 runners at Sunday’s Modo Spring Run-Off 8K in Stanley Park. The event was “Opening Day” for Canada Running Series 2015, the country’s #1 running circuit, and drew runners from 7 provinces and 8 countries. It was also an important fundraiser for the Take-A-Hike Foundation. …more at Canada Running Series

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BMO St. Patrick’s Day 5K: Wiebe and Cliff Prevail

The 2015 BMO St. Patrick’s Day 5K took place today under cloudy skies and mild temperatures. The torrential rain that pummeled Vancouver through the night and into the morning cleared up shortly before the race started.
The winners were Vancouver’s Kelly Wiebe and Rachel Cliff, who repeated her 2014 record-setting performance. They finished the race in 14:27 and 16:15, respectively, while the top-three overall were rounded out by Luc Bruchet, who finished in 14:35 and the 2014 winner Geoff Martinson who finished in 14:39. Dayna Pidhoresky finished the race in second place with a time of 16:37, while Erin Burrett of Nanaimo finished in 16:58. …more at Athletics Illustrated
Also see: Video highlights and interviews

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Summerfast 2014 Race Report

Weeks of uninterrupted warmth and sunshine came to a screeching halt just in time for the 2014 edition of the Summerfast 10K. This may have come as a disappointment to the organizers, but Vancouverites are accustomed to racing in the rain, and were perhaps grateful for the cooler temperatures as they set off on a loop around the iconic Stanley Park seawall. …more
Also see: Course Record for Cliff highlights Summerfast 10K

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Wykes and Marchant notch emphatic victories at Scotiabank Vancouver Half-marathon

Dylan Wykes and Lanni Marchant showed why they are Canada’s #1 ranked Men’s and Women’s marathoners with emphatic victories at today’s Scotiabank Vancouver Half-marathon. Wykes ran 63:52 for his win; Marchant 73:41 for the Women’s crown. Conditions were perfect for the 4,000 half-marathoners who lined up at UBC at 7:30am. Skies were clear and bright, the temperature was 12°C, and there was hardly a breath of wind throughout the majestic course along Pacific shores, down to world-famous Stanley Park. …more

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Martinson and Watkins crowned BC 5K Champions at Longest Day Road Race

The BlueShore Financial Longest Day Road Races hosted by the Vancouver Thunderbirds club were blessed with sunny skies on Friday evening, at the latest stop in the Timex BC Road Running Series. The feature 5K event also served as the 2014 BC Championship, as well as being part of the Lower Mainland Road Race Series. Events got underway with the Kids Mile, as over 100 enthusiastic kids led the charge around UBC Thunderbird Stadium. Once finished they had opportunity to participate in RunJumpThrow and other activities. …more

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Rotich runs away with Sandcastle 10K title

A new route did little to slow down the field at the Sandcastle City Classic 10K Sunday. This year’s run — the route for which was altered this year due to construction along Marine Drive — was won by Nairobi, Kenya runner Solomon Rotich, who set a blistering pace and finished in 31 minutes, 44 seconds. Rotich’s time was two minutes and 40 seconds faster than that of the second-place finisher, Vancouver’s Evan Elder…. The first woman to cross the finish line was Vancouver’s Jen Moroz, who was sixth overall with a time of 37:18. …more

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BMO Sunshine Coast April Fool’s Run a Record-Breaking Day

Perfect conditions on Sunday resulted in a record breaking day at the 37th BMO Sunshine Coast April Fool’s Run, presented by Coast Cable. After an exciting and intensely fought battle for the majority of the course, Abbotsford’s David Jackson edged out Vancouver’s Kevin O’Connor for a 3-second victory in 1:09:09. The women’s race was clear-cut but no less exciting. Wildly exceeding all pre-race expectations, Gibsons’ own Kimberley Doerksen not only smashed the women’s event record by over 3 minutes, but she did it wearing a rainbow tutu costume, in true Fool’s Run spirit. Her 1:14:53 placed her fifth overall in the field. …more