Vancouver Sun Run
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The Vancouver Sun Run, sponsored by The Vancouver Sun newspaper, is a 10km race held in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada each year on the third (sometimes the fourth) Sunday in April since 1985. The first Vancouver Sun Run in 1985 started with approximately 3,700 participants[1], and has grown each year since. With over 39,000 finishers in 2006, it ranked as the 9th largest race in the world[2] and the 3rd largest 10km race, behind only the Peachtree Road Race in Atlanta and the Bolder Boulder in Boulder.
The 2006 event took place on April 23 and 50,746[3] participants registered for the 10km Sun Run and the 2.5km "mini Sun Run", which was run by 2,000 people, mostly children and their parents, with some school teams participating as well. On April 15, 2007, the Sun Run had a record amount of participants, with 54,317[3] people registered to participate in the 10km and 2.5km races, making it the largest 10 km road race in Canada and the second largest in North America[3].
On April 20, 2008, the record was again broken, with 59,179[3] runners registered for the run. The temperature was a chilly 3°C (37.4°F).
The primary mandate of the Sun Run is to "promote health, fitness and community spirit and to support amateur athletics". The run is not a charity event; however, the organisers claim over $1.1 million in race proceeds have been donated to charities since 1985.
Amateur Radio operators from many clubs worked as a vital communication link during the race. They provided extra eyes in the crowd and helped with medical issues and helped locate missing children. Many of the Operators are involved in ARES (Amateur Radio Emergency Service) programmes from the Lower Mainland. They include Operators from clubs like Burnaby Amateur Radio club, Richmond, Surrey, North Vancouver, VECTOR (ARES group), and many others.
Contents |
[edit] Past winners[4]
| Year | Male winner | Female winner | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1985 | Rob Lonergan |  Canada |
28:47 | Susan Lee | Canada |
32:39 |
| 1986 | Graeme Fell | Canada |
29:30 | Deborah Bowker | Canada |
33:31 |
| 1987 | Graeme Fell | Canada |
29:11 | Lynn Williams | Canada |
32:15 |
| 1988 | Paul Williams | Canada |
29:12 | Lynn Williams | Canada |
33:04 |
| 1989 | Rex Wilson |  New Zealand |
28:44 | Lynn Williams | Canada |
32:19 |
| 1990 | David Campbell | Canada |
28:54 | Deborah Bowker | Canada |
33:06 |
| 1991 | Philip Ellis | Canada |
29:03 | Patricia Puntous | Canada |
33:48 |
| 1992 | Paul Williams | Canada |
29:03 | Nancy Tinari | Canada |
32:44 |
| 1993 | Silvio Guerra |  Ecuador |
28:42 | Leah Pells | Canada |
32:48 |
| 1994 | Daniel Komen |  Kenya |
27:46 | Daria Nauer |  Switzerland |
32:55 |
| 1995 | Simon Chemoiywo | Kenya |
28:27 | Olga Appell |  United States |
32:57 |
| 1996 | Joseph Kimani | Kenya |
27:31 | Angela Chalmers | Canada |
31:05 |
| 1997 | Thomas Nyariki | Kenya |
27:56 | Sally Barsosio | Kenya |
31:47 |
| 1998 | Christian Weber | Canada |
28:40 | Krystina Pieczulis |  Poland |
32:55 |
| 1999 | Simon Chemoiywo | Kenya |
28:52 | Tina Connelly | Canada |
32:41 |
| 2000 | James Koskei | Kenya |
27:36 | Sally Barsosio | Kenya |
32:24 |
| 2001 | James Koskei | Kenya |
28:06 | Sally Barsosio | Kenya |
33:04 |
| 2002 | James Koskei | Kenya |
27:58 | Sara Dillabough | Canada |
33:17 |
| 2003 | Paul Koech | Kenya |
28:48 | Aster Demissie |  Ethiopia |
33:20 |
| 2004 | Thomas Kiplitan | Kenya |
28:43 | Émilie Mondor | Canada |
31:10 |
| 2005 | Michael Power |  Australia |
29:26 | Nicole Stevenson | Canada |
32:30 |
| 2006 | Gilbert Okari | Kenya |
28:27 | Isabella Ochichi | Kenya |
30:58 |
| 2007 | Soloman Tsige | Ethiopia |
29:22 | Teyiba Erkesso | Ethiopia |
32:05 |
| 2008 | Festus Langat | Kenya |
29:26[3] | Genet Gebregiorgis | Ethiopia |
33:35[3] |
- Note: Bold face text denotes current course record holder.
[edit] Charity
Since 1997, one dollar from each Sun Run registration has been contributed to Raise-a-Reader, a national literacy campaign. The campaign went national in 2001, and has since raised over $10 million[5][6].
Sun Run proceeds also benefit B.C. amateur athletics through the Achilles International Track And Field Society and The Vancouver Sun Jerome International Track Classic, an annual track and field event that gives local athletes the chance to compete against some of the world’s best in their own province.
[edit] References
- ^ Vancouver Board of Trade, Sounding Board November 2003 Vol 43 # 6
- ^ Running USA [1] Accessed November 6, 2007
- ^ a b c d e f Vancouver Sun Run on Canada.com, http://www.canada.com/vancouversun/sunrun/index.html
- ^ Association of Road Racing Statisticians [2] Accessed September 2, 2006
- ^ Raise A Reader, National literacy campaign tops $10 million
- ^ The Vancouver Raise A Reader, CanWest Raise A Reader Day
