A powerful subject of athletes is about to tackle the attractive streets of Vancouver’s Gastown and Strathcona on the eleventh annual Below Armour Eastside 10K on Sunday, Sept 22. Greater than 3,500 members plan to toe the road–a report quantity–together with Olympians, former champions, and course record-holders. Particularly, it is going to be thrilling to see two-time Olympian Geneviève Lalonde as she returns to competitors for the primary time in additional than two years. (Lalonde gave start to a child lady in September 2023.)
Lalonde, 33, grew to become an Olympic finalist each at Rio 2016 and Tokyo 2020. In Tokyo, the Victoria native broke the nationwide report twice on her technique to incomes a best-ever end for a Canadian within the 3,000m steeplechase, taking eleventh in 9:22.40. She additionally received the steeplechase title on the 2019 Pan Am Video games in Lima, Peru, and was a finalist on the 2019 World Championships in Doha. In 2022, Lalonde introduced a break from observe competitions to concentrate on strengthening her psychological and bodily wellbeing–she had been a nationwide crew member competing on the world stage for the reason that age of 16.
On the lads’s facet, Andrew Davies of Sarnia, Ont., shall be one to look out for. The 23-year-old appears to thrive extra because the race distance will increase; he took third over the 8K distance at each the 2022 and 2023 U Sports activities championships (representing McMaster and UBC, respectively) however now, having graduated out of the U Sports activities circuit, he shall be a significant risk on Canada’s road-racing scene. He has since taken on the 5K, 10K, and half-marathon distances, and boasts a 10K private better of 29:25–the third quickest time in Canada this yr.
Two-time Olympian Natasha Wodak holds the Canadian marathon report of two:23:12, and as soon as held the 10K nationwide report earlier than shifting as much as the marathon some years in the past. She ran the quickest 10K time this yr in Could, clocking 33:21, and took residence the win on the 2024 Vancouver Half Marathon. Hearsay has it that she has eyes on the course report at Sunday’s UA 10K Eastside occasion as she prepares for the Toronto Waterfront Marathon in October.
2022 UA 10K Eastside report holder and Tokyo 2020 Olympian Ben Preisner of Milton, Ont., shall be aiming to overhaul reigning champion of the UA 10K Eastside (and 2023 Canadian Marathon Champion) Thomas Broatch of Vancouver.
The present course data stand at 29:20 for the lads, run by Kelly Wiebe in 2014 and Preisner in 2022, and 32:37 for the ladies, set by Malindi Elmore in 2022.
Canada Working Collection has partnered with 5 native charities: Promise Vancouver, City Native Youth Affiliation, PHS Neighborhood Providers Society, KidSport B.C. and Downtown Eastside Girls’s Centre. Together with a record-setting turnout of members, the occasion is already on observe to elevating $50,000 to donate to those neighborhood organizations. Click on right here to donate.
Extra details about Vancouver’s Eastside 10K might be discovered right here.
Geneviève Lalonde to return to racing at Vancouver’s Eastside 10K
