Kiptoo wins

When Kenya’s Gilbert Kiptoo saw fellow countryman Philip Kipchumba stopped to tie his shoes he took his chance to win the inaugural Thunder Bay Miles With the Giant Marathon.

Kiptoo took first place at the Sunday marathon with a time of 2:26:25 more than three minutes faster than last year. Kipchumba crossed the Red River Road finish line with a time of 2:27:51 and shaved about two minutes from last year despite having to stop twice during the race to tie his shoes.

Kiptoo said Kipchumba, who came in first last year, was supposed to have won the race but it happened that he was able to cross the finish line first.

“Normally Philip and I run a friendly race and in fact he was supposed to win today,” Kiptoo said. “I wanted him to win because I won the Thunder Bay 10 kilometer race in May. He didn’t tie his shoes that well so he had to retie along the way. Whoever wins it is OK because we even share our prizes.”

Kiptoo added they use the proceeds to fund charities back home.

The weather continued to change during the race. The early morning start had a few clouds with no hint of rain but by the time Kiptoo cross the finish line, he said he had to slow down his pace a few times because it was cold and windy.

Having lived in a much warmer climate, Kiptoo said he trained twice a day to prepare himself for the marathon and the weather.  

Kipchumba said he felt strong at the beginning of the race but toward the end it became too cold and he had to slow down. He thought he had enough time to catch up with Kiptoo after he stopped to tie his shoes but wasn’t able to make the distance in time.

“It caused me to stop two times,” Kipchumba said. “It was cold to tie them as well so I had a lot of trouble the second time. It is so disappointing.”

Thunder Bay’s Nicola Wilberforce was the top female finisher again in the full marathon with a time of 2:59:55, which brought her up fifth overall following Kakabeka Falls’ Scott Weibe and Thunder Bay’s Dougals Scott.

Wilberforce said she was excited to have won top female finisher for the second time in a row because she wasn’t too sure that she would be first one to cross the finish line this year.

“I wasn’t expecting to win this year because I knew there was this girl coming up from Toronto and I knew she was faster than me,” Wilberforce said. “I think just being from Thunder Bay and having all the hometown people cheering is really nice to win here.”

Race organizer Barry Streib said more than 750 people participated in the race this year and thought the whole event was a success.

“When the racers go off it is an amazing thing to see,” Streib said. “I’m glad it started off a little warmer this morning as supposed to this little coolness that we have now. But when you’re running a half-marathon or a full marathon at this point in time on your run the weather is not that major of a factor and in fact probably a little cooler is better. I would hate to have 80 degrees.”

Streib, who cheered runners of all abilities on as they crossed the finish line, said the marathon couldn’t have happened without the help of dozens of people working behind the scenes.

John Heitzman from Superior, Wis. took first in the half-marathon finishing at 1:09:19 minutes ahead of Winnipeg’s Corey Gallagher. North York’s Josiane Aboungono was the top woman with a time of 1:23:12 a few minutes faster than Ariel Heitzman from Superior, Wis.