Ottawa Marathon winner breaks course record
Posted May 27, 2013 06:04:39 AM.
This article is more than 5 years old.
OTTAWA, Ont. – A record was broken at the Ottawa Marathon Sunday morning. Top winner for the full marathon, Tariku Jufar from Ethiopia, finished the race in 2:08:04 – the fastest time for anyone in the Ottawa Marathon.
Rounding out the top five runners are Luka Rotich (Kenya), Gashaw Melese (Ethiopia), Teferi Kebede (Ethiopia) and James Mbugua (Kenya).
The first Canadians to cross the line were Rob Watson from Vancouver and Lucas Mcaneney from Toronto.
The downtown core was home to more than 43,000 runners this weekend for the 39th annual Tamarack Homes Ottawa Race Weekend, the largest marathon in Canada.
There were 6,252 participants in the marathon, 12,054 in the half-marathon and 10,557 in the 10K.
Races kicked off at Laurier Avenue and Elgin Streets and offered a scenic route along the Rideau Canal, before taking runners over the bridge to Gatineau and back again.
Race coordinators say they couldn’t have been happier with Saturday’s 10K race, which went off smoothly and featured some impressive competition.
Elite athlete co-ordinator Manny Rodrigues said the weekend cements Ottawa’s reputation as Canada’s most sought after destination for international elite runners.
The race has been called the most exciting the city has seen in years, with the top three runners finishing just four seconds apart.
In the end, Morocco’s El Hassan El Abassi won with a personal best 27:37. Another Moroccan, Malika Assahah, won the women’s event with a time of 31:45.
Kelly Wiebe was the top Canadian, finishing 8th in the men’s race while the top Canadian woman was Lanni Marchant, who finished 6th.
There were a number of road closures around the city due to the event, which draws approximately 100,000 spectators each year.
This year’s event supports 26 charities, including the Ottawa Hospital Foundation, Big Brothers Big Sisters of Ottawa and the Ottawa Humane Society. $405,552 was raised for the Ottawa Hospital Foundation.
Ottawa Paramedics also responded to 12 injuries during the marathon. Out of the 12, seven were taken to hospital with two of them suffering serious injuries. One runner suffered a seizure — was stabilized — and taken to hospital.
Another runner suffered a massive heart attack and was rushed to the Ottawa Heart Institute in serious condition.
