Why We Chase Records
The fastest female marathoner in Canadian history responds to a recent letter from one of our readers questioning why our best runners constantly go after national records
For many runners, elite or recreational, lining up for a race usually brings with it the hope to run a new personal best, or even our best time on a particular course. Many of the Canadian records are within reach for the current crop of elite marathon distance runners. So when we line up at the start after months of training, we set our sights on chasing the national record.
Going after a 28- or 39-year-old record is not something that we decide to do on a whim. During our training, we learn to read our bodies and know, usually within a minute or two, what kind of time we will be able to run. As marathon runners we get very few opportunities each year to line up in Olympic qualifying or record-breaking shape. Unlike racing shorter distances, or playing a sport where you have multiple games each month, elite marathon racing requires long training phases that limit our racing capabilities to once or twice a year. Oftentimes, we put in months of training for it all to come down to one race.
It just so happens that the Olympic standards are within a minute or so of the current records. Since we have limited opportunities to run in marathons that have the calibre of field, pacers and support necessary to run such times, we have to try to take advantage of the opportunities when they are presented.
It is important to note that, for a lot of us, this is how we are making our living. Unlike hockey, where players’ schedules are set and they are paid regardless of whether they chase a record or not, we have to choose our races based on paydays and potential record eligible courses, or turning down both to represent Canada at an international event. Running the Boston Marathon, for example, could be a potential payday and great experience; however, it is not eligible for a record. Rotterdam is a very fast course, but does not offer nearly the same financial incentives. Both of these races are usually within a few days of each other, so lining up for both is not really an option.
As you can see, a lot of factors go into deciding if we are going to chase a record. For each of those times we have stood on the start line, saying we are going for a record, we have also withdrawn or restated our goals once we have completed most of our training. At the end of the day however, do you really want your nation’s best going for the safe goals or pushing to become the best they can be? Lanni Marchant
@ LJM5252