Record-breaking 17,250 runners lace up for Calgary Marathon
Social Sharing
A record number of participants laced up their sneakers, pinned on race bibs and sped through the city during the Calgary Marathon weekend.
Approximately 17,250 runners hit the streets for the races — about 17 per cent more than the previous record of 14,750 from 2014.
"The energy from the city and the number of participants, I've never seen anything like it," said Kirsten Fleming, executive director of the Calgary Marathon Society.
"People are seemingly embracing running and all that comes with it more than I've ever seen in my 12 years of doing this."
This year's event also marked the first time races were held over two days, with 5K and 10K races held on Saturday. The full 42.2-kilometre marathon and 21.1-kilometre half marathon followed on Sunday. Kids' races took place on both days.
Fleming also said turnout from supporters reached an "unprecedented" high, with fans lined up "five deep" on some parts of the course to cheer on passing runners.
Kip Kangogo from Lethbridge ran the fastest time in the men's full marathon, clocking in a chip time of 2:28:42.
In the women's event, Kelly Challinor from Kelowna placed first with a chip time of 2:52:05.
Jessica Van Schothorst, a runner and right leg amputee, missed the time goal she set for herself in the half marathon, but still managed a personal best.
"I was put in the position where I couldn't run for many years," she said. "To be able to step foot on the 21-kilometre [finish line] this morning was incredible. I cried probably a good percentage of that race."
"Even despite all the complications that I do face over the years, I get to do this."
Approximately 3,200 first-time full and half marathon runners signed up to race on Sunday.
Kristen Harder ran the Calgary Marathon's 21.1-kilometre race for the second time.
"I can tell there were a lot more runners this year, which was awesome. It was always good energy, love the music and everybody shows out to cheer you on," she said.
Harder said she finished the half marathon with a chip time of 2:20:48.
"Probably gonna go lay on the couch and watch TV all day," she said when asked how she would celebrate.
Some road closures and parking bans were in effect Sunday to accommodate the races, including on Memorial Drive N.W. between 10th Street N.W. and Kensington Road N.W.
More runners will hit the streets and trails in the coming weeks. The Calgary Marathon has also organized a virtual race, where runners can take on any distance, anywhere at any time over the next 30 days to raise money for the participant's charity of choice.
The virtual race window runs from May 26 to June 22.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
CBC
44 minutes ago
- CBC
Get to know Sarah Nurse, one of the PWHL stars joining Vancouver's new team this fall
Vancouver's inaugural Professional Women's Hockey League team has already signed some big names: this week, the team signed Surrey's Jenn Gardiner, all-star defenders Claire Thompson and Sophie Jaques, goalie Emerance Maschmeyer and all-around hockey legend Sarah Nurse. Nurse has two Olympic medals under her belt: a silver in 2018 and a gold from the 2020 Tokyo Games. She's been with the Toronto Sceptres since the PWHL launched in 2023, as one of the team's first three signings. During the inaugural season, she tied for second in league scoring with 23 points in 24 games and was voted a Second Team All-Star. Vancouverites saw her play this past season at the sold-out PWHL game at Rogers Arena in January, where the Montreal Victoire beat the Sceptres 4-2. This week, she signed a one-year contract with PWHL Vancouver. "It's like a whirlwind," she said. "I am so excited to be able to play professional hockey in Vancouver. I think it's really the opportunity of a lifetime, and being here in January, I saw the passion, I saw the zest, I saw the excitement for women's hockey. If the fans could show up for a Toronto and Montreal team, I can't even imagine how amazing it's gonna be for their own hometown team." Nurse joined Amy Bell on CBC's On The Coast for an interview following the announcement. This interview has been edited for length and clarity. Did this move to Vancouver come as a surprise for you? A little bit. With the expansion draft and the rules and how everything was going to shake out, I knew it was a possibility that I would be left unprotected by Toronto. I knew that if I went to an expansion team, Vancouver was my target. After talking to Cara Gardner Morey from Vancouver, I couldn't be more excited because I just know that it's the right fit for me. What has playing for the Sceptres been like? I think from day one, when this league started, I was blown away by the support everywhere. Toronto embraced us with everything that they have. We were the first professional women's sports team in Toronto. Now, we've been joined by the NSL soccer team and also the WNBA team that's coming. There's so many hockey fans, there's so many young hockey players who are coming up within the Greater Toronto Area. They're absolutely incredible, and I'm so grateful for their support. How important was it for a new Vancouver team to sign a high-profile name like yours? I was obviously very honoured to be in consideration to be brought to Vancouver. I take a lot of pride in what I do off of the ice and my impact in the community on the fans and the supporters. But I think, ultimately, my biggest goal is to make a splash and make an impact on the ice. I want to be the best possible player that I can be for this organization and really put my best foot forward because I know that I have a lot of skills and abilities that I think are going to be great on this team. What kind of role do you think you're going to be able to play with this new team? I have very high expectations of myself. I definitely want to be a leader on and off of the ice. I think with the other girls and Sophie and Claire, they're pretty locked down on the back end. They're two very, very world-class defencemen. And then Emerance in net, an absolute brick wall. I think she's been probably the best goalie in the PWHL for the last two years. Jenn Gardiner, who's young, new, fresh talent who has so much potential, and it's going to be great to see her blossom and grow. You battled a long-term injury this past season. How are you feeling as you get prepared to hit the ice in Vancouver this fall? I'm feeling so optimistic. I'm excited to have some time to actually fully rehab my knee and be able to be the absolute best that I can be when November comes. I'm excited to put in the work. I think I'm going to get on the ice next week, which I'm actually itching to do, especially with the news and signing in Vancouver. I want the season to start now. Off the ice, your contributions are just as huge. You hosted Nursey Nights in Toronto to provide community groups tickets to the Sceptre games. You helped found the Professional Women's Hockey Players Association and are also a part of the PWHL players' union. And you're an advocate against racism in hockey. What do you hope to continue here in Vancouver? All of the above. I really have a passion for making this sport as inclusive as possible and making sure that our sport represents the fabric of our nation. I think that we are such a diverse, multicultural society, and I think that our experiences should really reflect that in our game. I'm so encouraged to come to Vancouver and continue the work. I'm excited to bring Nursey Nights to Vancouver. We've been able, we brought 200 girls over this last year into Toronto Sceptres games, and so I'm looking to do something very similar in Vancouver. I think there's so many great community initiatives that our team can be a part of, and that's something that's a passion for all of us. Your cousin, Darnell Nurse, plays for the Edmonton Oilers, who are currently battling it out for the Stanley Cup. How exciting is it to see him and the Oilers in the finals again? I could not be more proud of that boy. He has gone through so much, that team has gone through so much and honestly, they are absolutely rolling right now. So I'm very hopeful and I know they're going to have a different result than they had last year. They've been on the stage. They know how big it is, and they've been absolutely rolling. So I'm so proud of him.
CBC
an hour ago
- CBC
Birth records will be key in Alberta's new ban on female trans athletes, regulations show
Alberta has revealed how its new ban, prohibiting transgender athletes from competing in amateur female sports divisions, will be enforced. The supporting regulations for the Fairness and Safety in Sport Act, released this week, signal a major shift in how gender in sport will be governed in Alberta when the legislation comes into force this September. The regulations detail how an athlete's gender will be proven, documented and potentially challenged. It also establishes a formal complaints process that would allow Albertans to question who has the right to compete as a female. Under the new policy, schools, universities and sports clubs will be required to bar transgender women and girls from competition, and — in the event of a complaint — investigate an athlete's sex by examining their birth records. The regulations will also require schools and sporting organizations to report any eligibility complaints — and the results of each challenge — to the government. From baseball and boxing to ringette and gymnastics, the act deems transgender women ineligible to compete in nearly 90 sports organizations in Alberta. The act — which applies to athletes 12 years and older — also supports the expansion and creation of "mixed gender" divisions, where numbers warrant. Alberta's United Conservative Party government says the changes will protect the integrity of female athletic competitions by ensuring women and girls have the opportunity to compete in "biological female-only divisions." The rules "will level the playing field," and prevent athletes who were born female from harm, Andrew Boitchenko, Minister of Tourism and Sport, said in a statement. Critics have described the pending ban as a discriminatory attack on transgender competitors. A question of quitting Mark Kosak, CEO of Alberta Colleges Athletic Conference, said the legislation will end up pushing athletes out of Alberta. The ACAC is one of the close to 90 organizations impacted by the changes. "I think they'll leave, they'll go to another conference or another province, they'll go somewhere where this restriction doesn't apply and they don't have this concern and that's unfortunate," he said. "What I can almost predict is that a transgender athlete will feel somewhat threatened to stay in Alberta." The province has suggested leagues create co-ed divisions, but Kosak said that would be too costly and require more facilities, coaches and officials. Alberta sports organizations will need to create and implement eligibility policies by Sept. 1. Leagues and educational institutions will be required to track each athlete's gender at birth. Linda Blade, a coach and former president of Athletics Alberta, has been a vocal supporter of the new ban. She said the legislation will provide much-needed clarity to sport administrators across the province. She hopes other jurisdictions will follow suit and adopt regulations that keep female-born athletes in a league of their own. She said the policy is not meant as an attack on trans people, but is designed to protect women and girls and their right to compete. "It's not anti trans, it's not anti-anything. It's pro-women." Gender challenges At the time of registration, an athlete or their guardian will be required to confirm in writing that the athlete qualifies under the law to play in a female league, according to the regulations. If that claim is not believed, a formal challenge can be made in writing to the board for the sports division. The athlete, or their guardian, will then be asked to provide the board with a birth registration document detailing their assigned sex at birth. A birth registration document includes the person's sex at birth. Unlike a birth certificate, the sex listed on a birth registration document cannot be changed. Under the rules, boards of those nearly impacted organizations are required to report any challenges regarding eligibility to the Minister of Tourism and Sport within three business days. Boards must also report the results of the challenge within 30 days. It is expected that challenges will be resolved within a 30 business-day period, the province said. Athletes can continue to compete while an investigation is ongoing. If their birth records show they are not eligible, they will be immediately prohibited from competition. The province says boards will be empowered to impose "reasonable sanctions" against anyone who launches a challenge in "bad faith." Such sanctions may include written warnings or code of conduct violations, according to the province. Debate over the inclusion of transgender athletes in female sports has been a highly charged issue in recent years. Florence Ashley, an assistant professor in the Faculty of Law at the University of Alberta, said the regulations are purposefully vague. Ashley said the lack of details on how challenges will be managed opens the door for changes to be made quietly and "on the fly." The new rules demonstrate a dangerous shortsightedness, Ashley said. Ashley said the government has relied on the "politics of fear" to engineer a "moral panic" over fairness in sport and a false premise that trans women have a competitive advantage. Transgender women will be "harmed immensely" by the policy, along with female athletes who are not trans, Ashley said. Instead of fairness in athletics, the ban will foster discrimination, harassment, fear and false challenges, Ashley said. "Even if that's not the intent, that will be the effect." Allison Hadley, a trans woman who competes as an amateur athlete, said the ban will be harmful to people in a broad range of demographics, including children and youth. Hadley, born and raised in Edmonton, played rugby for nine years before competing in cross-country skiing. She stopped competing last year due to the pending ban. She fears she will never return to the sport. "There's a lot of extra steps for trans people in everyday life as-is, so this is just another one that's designed to get us to quit," she said.
CTV News
2 hours ago
- CTV News
Maple Leafs hire former Red Wings head coach Derek Lalonde as assistant
Detroit Red Wings head coach Derek Lalonde, standing, watches during the first period of an NHL hockey game against the St. Louis Blues, Monday, Dec. 23, 2024, in Detroit. (AP Photo/Jose Juarez) TORONTO — The Toronto Maple Leafs have hired former Detroit Red Wings head coach Derek Lalonde as an assistant on Craig Berube's staff, the NHL team announced Friday. The 52-year-old from Brasher Falls, N.Y., had a 89-86-23 record leading the Red Wings bench from the start of the 2022-23 season until he was fired midway through the 2024-25 campaign. He previously spent four seasons with the Tampa Bay Lightning as an assistant coach, winning back-to-back Stanley Cups in 2020 and 2021. Lalonde was an assistant coach with the United States at the 2023 and 2024 world championships. Before joining the NHL, he held head-coaching roles with the American Hockey League's Iowa Wild, the ECHL's Toledo Walleye and the United States Hockey League's Green Bay Gamblers. Mike Van Ryn and Marc Savard are Toronto's other assistants. Associate coach Lane Lambert left the Maple Leafs a week ago to take over as Seattle's head coach. This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 6, 2025.
