FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
GoodLife Fitness Victoria Marathon Announces Elite Field
Frontrunners Walk of Fame Honours Local Runners
(Victoria, BC - October 10, 2014) Two defending champions will be back to
run the 35th Annual GoodLife Fitness Marathon. Catrin Jones, the 2013 and
2010 champion, and Thomas Omwenga, the 2012 and 2011 winner will be
returning on Sunday, October 12 to tackle the Victoria course. As of noon
Wednesday, when online registration closed, there were 9,541 in the four
events - the Marathon, Half Marathon, 8K Road Race and the Thrifty Foods
Kids Run.
Jones, who lives in Victoria, ran a personal best at Victoria last year in
2:43:03. She also recorded a first place finish in the Kamloops Marathon
and Vancouver 'First Half' Half. This year she set a course record in the
Whistler 10K. She will be challenged by Lioudmila Kortchaguina, from
Thornhill, Ontario, who has a personal best of 2:29:42. In the 2013
Canadian Marathon Championships in Ottawa, she ran 2:33:10.
For Omwenga, a favourite with the Victoria crowd, this will be his fourth
time running the event. He won the 2013 BMO Vancouver Marathon, and came
fourth in Victoria the same year. Second seed Daniel Kipkoech from
Lethbridge has a personal best of 2:19:20 (Caen, 2012), and came third in
the Scotiabank Calgary Marathon this year. There are three Masters in the
Marathon field who should not be discounted and who could challenge for the
top three - Jason Loutitt (PB of 2:24:00), Graeme Wilson (2:27:58), and
Oliver Utting (2:21:01).
The women's Half Marathon will see Canadian Running Magazine, Master of the
Year competing - Victoria's Marilyn Arsenault. She has a personal best (PB)
of 1:15:39, set in Victoria in 2009. She won the Oak Bay Half Marathon in
2014 and 2013, and is the 10,000 Canadian 40+ record holder (34:22.21). She
will be competing against Lisa Brooking from White Rock (PB of 1:17:42) and
Tori Tyler from California (PB 1:19:36).
The men's field is led by Johana Kariankei (Guelph, Ontario) who has a
personal best of 1:04:16. Two-time winner of the TC10K, Willy Kimosop, is
returning, hoping to better his two third-place finishes in the Victoria
Half Marathon (2012 and 2013). He has a personal best of 1:05:03. In the
Masters category Jim Finlayson is the clear favourite - he is a previous
champion in Victoria at both the Marathon and Half Marathon.
The 8K women's field is led by Lindsay Carson, from Whitehorse, YT. She has
a personal best of 27:17 from the 2014 Mondo Spring Run Off. Glynis Sim,
from Salmon Arm, BC, who came fourth last year in 30:44 is returning, as is
three-time Xterra World Champion Melanie McQuaid. Nancy Baxendale from
Shawnigan Lake is the top master. She had an impressive record in the 2014
Vancouver Island Race Series winning her age group.
In the 8K Road Race, it will be a battle between Geoff Martinson and Nick
Walker. Martinson was second in the Half Marathon in 2013, setting a
personal best of 1:05:39. He has represented Canada in the 1500m at the
Track and Field World Championships, was top Canadian in the 2013 TC10K and
won the 2013 Frontrunners Island Race Series. Walker won the inaugural TC
Half Marathon this year and has an 8K PB of 25:06. Craig Odermatt and Bruce
Deacon are the Masters contenders; Deacon has run 23:32 and Odermatt 25:10.
The 2014 Frontrunners Walk of Fame inductees were also announced today.
Marilyn Arsenault and 92-year old Hans Sandberg were presented with their
stones, which will be placed outside Frontrunners' downtown store. Sandberg
is the oldest participant in Sunday's event and he will be running the Half
Marathon.
For the sixth year in a row the GoodLife Fitness Victoria Marathon will
host the BC Marathon Championships. The total prize purse for the Marathon
and Half Marathon is $46,650, with $4,000 each going to the top male and
female Marathoner, and a $5,000 bonus for a new men's or women's Marathon
course record. The Men's course record was set in 2013 by Lamech Mokono in
2:13:42 and the Women's by Lucy Njeri in 2011 (2:37:56). Natasha Fraser
set a new Women's Half Marathon record in 2012 (1:14:06). The Men's Half
Marathon record is held by Jon Brown (2002 - 1:02:32). Gary Barber holds
the Men's 8K course record (1989 - 23:23) and Ulla Marquette holds the
Women's record (1991 - 26:24).
As of online registration closing on Wednesday the Marathon has 2,039
registrants; the Half Marathon has 4,385; the 8K Road Race has 2,406, and
the Thrifty Foods Kids Run is at 711. Registration is still open for all
events with late entries being accepted at the Race Expo, at the Victoria
Conference Centre, from 3:00 pm - 7:30 pm on Friday, October 10, and 9:00
am - 6:00 pm on Saturday, October 11. There is no race day registration.
For more details visit www.runvictoriamarathon.com
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