By Paul Gains
Although the strong international women’s field fell short of the TCS Toronto Waterfront Marathon course record this morning, the race was one of the most exciting athletics contests ever fought on Canadian soil.
Kenya’s Leah Jeruto ran away from her rivals in the final five kilometres to win in 2:21:19, a time surpassed by only two women on this course.
It was a massive personal best, knocking more than three minutes off the 2:24:31 she recorded at this year’s Cape Town Marathon in May, where she finished fourth.
Ethiopia’s Nigsti Haftu followed her home 15 seconds later in 2:21:34, while compatriot Ayinadis Teshome took third in 2:22:51. The target had been Waganesh Mekasha’s 2024 course record of 2:20:44.
On a cool morning, with a cold westerly wind blowing off Lake Ontario, the leading women passed halfway in 1:10:58. Ten runners followed two designated pacers.
As the race progressed, one pacer dropped out while the other continued to 40 km. The pack eventually broke apart, leaving three women in contention. Jeruto was the only runner able to stay with the pacer, who continued for another kilometre.
“I feel very happy with my personal best; to go from 2:24 to 2:21,” Jeruto said at the finish. Smiling, she added, “I like Toronto. I was very excited because I was not expecting a personal best.”
Leonard Langat of Kenya successfully defended his 2025 Toronto Waterfront Marathon title, finishing in 2:06:51 to claim the CAD $25,000 prize.
The 30-year-old was content to remain buried in the pack of 12 men who passed halfway in 1:03:30. Around 35 km, however, he emerged to push the pace. His surge split the contenders, and the race was on.
Checking his watch periodically, Langat continued to open the gap until the finish. His compatriot Fanny Kiprotich, who had won both of his previous two marathons, finished second in 2:07:21. For the third consecutive year, Noah Kipkemboi made the podium, finishing third in 2:07:25. Kipkemboi was second in 2025 and third in 2024.
“This has been a little bit cold and a very competitive and strong field,” Langat admitted. “I tried my best and I managed to break the group. [Toronto] is like home. I will be very happy to come back next year and forever.”
In addition to being a World Athletics Elite Label race, the TCS Toronto Waterfront Marathon also serves as the Athletics Canada Canadian Marathon Championships.
Pidhoresky and Davies Lead Canadian Championships
Dayna Pidhoresky led the Canadian women’s field from the beginning, forging a gap that at one point had observers wondering whether she might fold. Indeed, her pursuers closed to within a few seconds before she pushed on again.
She passed halfway in 1:13:16, with a 15- to 20-second gap separating her from her rivals.
A month shy of her 40th birthday, Pidhoresky was rewarded with a huge personal best, crossing the line in 2:26:02. That was more than three minutes faster than the 2:29:03 she ran when winning the Canadian Marathon Championships in 2019. On that occasion, her performance earned her an automatic place on Canada’s Tokyo-bound Olympic team.
Her time today makes her the third-fastest Canadian woman of all time. It could have been faster still had stomach problems not forced an unscheduled pit stop.
“Coming into this race I was confident,” she said. “I think today was maybe a good day. I had some stomach problems that distracted me. But my body felt very strong. The confidence of having a really good build and setting PBs in the 10K and the half marathon; I felt ready for another PB because most of my training has been geared towards the marathon.”
She praised Canadian women’s record-holder Natasha Wodak for pacing her early in the race and, in particular, designated pacer Philip Parrot-Migas.
“Phil was amazing. I feel so lucky to have had him as my pacer through and past 40K, which was great on a windy day,” she explained.
The 2026 Canadian 10K and 10000m champion, Florence Caron, made her marathon debut in Toronto. She went out conservatively, intending to establish a mark to target in her next marathon.
Her strategy paid off as the 25-year-old from La Malbaie, Quebec, claimed the silver medal in 2:29:37.
“I had multiple goals being my first time and not knowing what to expect the last part,” she said with a smile. “I was on a faster pace early in the race and really got hit (at 35K). I was trying to finish and enjoy the crowd and my family.”
The bronze medal went to Lindsay Lamrock in 2:30:49. A sometime training partner of 2025 Canadian champion Rachel Hannah, Lamrock recorded a personal best by nine minutes. Hannah, meanwhile, endured stomach distress and finished well back.
The Canadian men’s field included several athletes making their marathon debuts, as well as two men with personal bests under 2:11. One was Thomas Broatch, the 2023 Canadian champion, who won the title in his marathon debut.
It was therefore surprising to see unsponsored debutant Andrew Davies in the thick of the action as the leaders passed halfway in 1:04:46.
The Vancouver-based runner showed his inexperience around 24 km when he missed a bottle station and doubled back to retrieve his drink. Undeterred, he quickly rejoined the group before pushing on alone over the final 10 kilometres.
In doing so, Davies not only won the Canadian title but also finished 10th overall.
Until today, the fastest marathon debut by a Canadian man was 2:09:25, recorded by Cam Levins in 2018 on the Toronto Waterfront course when he broke Jerome Drayton’s 43-year-old Canadian record. Davies crossed the line in 2:08:48.
He was delighted with his victory but also respectful of the Canadians ranked ahead of him: national record-holder Cam Levins (2:05:36) and Rory Linkletter (2:06:49).
“I have looked up to Cam and Rory, especially, the top two,” he revealed. “And Thomas Nobbs (2:08:35) and I have been racing when I started university and, seeing what they could accomplish in the marathon, it made me think I could do that one day.
“I definitely thought there is no reason I couldn’t run 2:08 one day. We had great weather today and an incredible pacer.”
John Gay, a 2021 Tokyo Olympic finalist in the 3000m steeplechase, had intended to make his marathon debut in Toronto a year ago, but a back injury forced him to withdraw. Instead, he made his debut in Ottawa this past May, running 2:14:16.
Today, he was the last of Davies’ challengers to fall away but held on for the silver medal with a personal best of 2:13:01.
The bronze medal went to Perry MacKinnon, who also recorded a personal best, finishing in 2:13:35.
Another notable performance came from Jennifer MacDonell, who set a world record in the W70-74 category with a time of 3:23:54, down from the previous record of 3:27:00.
Meanwhile, Kristian Jamieson lowered his personal best to 2:27:31, moving closer to his target of beating the 2:24:24 best recorded by his great-great-grandfather, Tom Longboat. A member of the Six Nations community, Longboat ran that time while winning the 1907 Boston Marathon.
