MARATHON MOMENTS
The 39th annual Saskatchewan Marathon takes place Sunday morning along the South Saskatchewan River. Organizers expect approximately 4,000 participants, with more than 2,600 adults and 1,300 youth signed up as of Friday. Here are six things to know about
1. The races
Besides the marathon portion — all 42.2 kilometres or 26.2 miles of it — there are also races for the half marathon (21.1 km/13.1 miles), 10 kilometres, five kilometres and Marafun program for children.
The start/finish line for the five kilometres, 10 kilometres, halfmarathon, marathon and Marafun is located on St. Henry Avenue, right next to Diefenbaker Park.
Pre-race ceremonies begin at 7:15 a.m., followed by the marathon and half-marathon start at 7:30 a.m., 10 kilometres (6.2 miles) at 8 a.m., five kilometres (3.1 miles) at 8:25 a.m. and Marafun event at 11 a.m.
The start/finish line is located on St. Henry Avenue right next to Diefenbaker Park. Free parking is available at the nearby Prairieland Park.
To run in the marathon, a competitor must be 16 years or older. You must be 14 or older to run the half-marathon. The 10-km race requires the runner to be at least 12 years old. There is no age restriction for the 5-km event 2. The 2016 marathon
A year ago, Ukraine’s Sergii Vashurin won the 2016 Saskatchewan Marathon in a time of 2 hours, 31 minutes and 35 seconds, beating his 2015 winning time of 2:37.55 by more than six minutes.
Brendan Lundy of Camrose, Alta., was the runner-up at 2:35.11, while Saskatoon’s Brian Michasiw placed third in a time of 2:45.23.
On the women’s side, Erin Gardiner of Saskatoon captured top honours with a winning time of three hours, four minutes and 34 seconds. Moose Jaw’s Caitlyn Howe was the runner-up at 3:24.42, followed by Saskatoon’s Tina Cadrain at 3:27.09.
Ruslan Kramariuk, also from Ukraine, won the men’s halfmarathon in a personal-best time of 1:12.19. Saskatoon’s James Funk (1:20.41) placed second and Weyburn’s Gerry Nagy (1:20.50) third.
Saskatoon’s Nicole Bletsky captured the women’s half-marathon in a time of 1:33.39. Saskatoon’s Jennifer Kripki (1:34.22) was second and Kim Davy (1:34.53) third. 3. The History
The first Saskatchewan Marathon was held in May of 1979 in preparation for the Western Canada Summer Games marathon that summer. The marathon was moved to fall in 1981 and continued to run in the fall until 2003. It’s been held in late May ever since.
The men’s marathon course record of 2:25.03 was set in 1994 by Bryce Raymer.
The women’s mark of 3:00.21 was established by current reigning champion Erin Gardiner in 2015.
Current world record-holders for the marathon are Kenya’s Dennis Kimetto (men), 2:02.57, Sept. 28, 2014, and Mary Jepkosgei Keitany, 2:19.01, April 23, 2017. 4. The prize money
There is prize money available for the top-three finishers in the 5-km, 10-km, half-marathon and marathon races. That includes a $1,500 cash prize for first place in the full marathon. As a Canada 150 incentive for the 2017 Saskatchewan Marathon, there’s a $1,000 bonus for anybody beating the marathon course record.
Also this year, a limited number of spots were made available for complimentary entry in the elite/ competitive category for both men and women in each of the four events: marathon, half-marathon, 10 km and 5 km.
5. The race expo
All participants can pick up their race packages at the Saskatchewan Marathon Race Expo, to be held Saturday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Prairieland Park Hall A.
Each runner will receive a Tshirt, race bib and any last-minute details about the race.
The Race Expo is open to anyone with an interest in walking or running, whether you are taking part in the race events or not.
6. The pasta dinner
The traditional Saskatchewan Marathon pasta dinner takes place Saturday from 5-7 p.m. at Prairieland Park.
The dinner is also filled with words of inspiration from keynote speakers Tarrant Crosschild and his coach Jason Warick, as well as some surprise guests. Crosschild — who won the 1998 Saskatchewan Marathon and moved up the national rankings — fell into a decade-long abyss filled with alcohol and gambling addictions that derailed his running career and nearly cost him his life. He is now back running training, coaching and now sharing his story with indigenous youth across the nation. **Following Sunday’s race, please check for results online