Natasha Wodak and Justin Kent cruised to their first Canadian marathon titles on Sunday in Toronto.
Wodak, the 42-year-old Canadian women’s record holder, strode to victory within the TCS Toronto Waterfront Marathon in a time of two hours 27 minutes 54 seconds. It marked the primary time the Surrey, B.C., native competed within the event since 2013 and her fifth overall national title.
Kent, the 32-year-old also from Surrey, crossed the finish line in a personal-best time of two:12:17.
Ethiopia’s Mulugeta Uma claimed the lads’s overall championship in a time of two:07.16, his second profession title after winning the Paris Marathon earlier this yr.
Meanwhile, fellow Ethiopian Waganesh Mekasha earned some redemption, winning the ladies’s title in a runaway, course-record time of two:20:44 after losing out by one second in a sprint finish last yr.
Wodak said Friday her major goals for the race were so as to add the title of Canadian champion to her decorated resumé and to have a good time.
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She completed the previous easily, beating second-place Leslie Sexton by over five minutes.
And it seems as if the latter is also deemed successful as Wodak ran the ultimate 100 metres with a smile on her face and her arms raised, encouraging the gang to cheer her on.
Kent, who placed thirtieth on the 2023 world championships, raced solo across a lot of the 42.4-kilometre course through city streets. Across the halfway point, it appeared as if Kent might be passed because the chase pack narrowed its gap to around 10 seconds.
However the University of British Columbia graduate responded by finding his second wind, pulling away once more and leaving no room for doubt through the ultimate stretch.
Three-time Paralympian Josh Cassidy won his third straight Canadian and overall title within the wheelchair race, crossing the finish line in 1:38.09.
Organizers said nearly 30,000 runners from 70 countries participated within the weekend’s events, which included a five-kilometre race on Saturday and the marathon, wheelchair marathon and half marathon on Sunday.
Weather conditions were ideal for running because the temperature steadily rose from around 7 to 14 degrees C throughout the race.
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