Richard Allen and Madelyn Eybergen won the 2026 TC10K in 29:43 and 32:44, respectively

© Copyright – 2026 – Athletics Illustrated

The Times Colonist 10K (TC10K) was won on Sunday, April 26, in ideal conditions in Victoria, British Columbia. The subject of the day was the rare occurrence of not having a headwind between the 5 km mark and 8 km along the Dallas Road waterfront.

Men’s race

“The conditions were perfect, and it is such a nice race,” shared Richard Allen, who won in the time of 29:43, which stands as the current course record, but not the historic event record, which is held by Kenyan Simon Chemwoiyo, at 28:47 from 1995.

Allen, from Huddersfield, UK, is visiting his brother in Vancouver and taking in some races while on the West Coast. He finished fourth in the Vancouver Sun Run, clocking a 29:05 performance. Allen is currently working with the Vancouver-based VFAC club under the guidance of coach Kevin O’Connor.

Taking second was Liam Dwyer, who grew up in Victoria. He is a Mount Doug High School graduate and was a junior Harrier coached by two-time Olympian Bruce Deacon. Dwyer went on to run for the University of British Columbia Thunderbirds. “I didn’t quite get the time of sub-30 minutes, I was looking for today, but 30:09 is still pretty good,” shared Dwyer, who ran 31:05 last year at the TC10K. He is coming off a 30:03 performance from the Vancouver Sun Run last week.

Next up are a few local meets and a 5000m attempt in Portland, Oregon, this summer.

Taking third was Danny Morin, who clocked in a 30:30 performance and a new personal best. Morin will be racing the 2026 World Masters Championships in Cape Town, South Africa, on Sunday, May 24. He will be looking to run sub-2:20.

“I have been practicing on this course by running the last hill aggressively and over the finish area so that I know it. Today was a great run, I thought I was going to finish in about 31 minutes, so I am quite happy with the performance,” shared Morin. His personal best was just over 31 minutes in the Toronto 10K.

A group of athletes ran together to the 5km mark, where a 300m-long hill often breaks up the lead pack. True to its reputation, Allen dropped the field at the top of the hill, which included Dwyer, Brandon Vail, Chris Gregor, and David Mutai. The second pack included Jonah Broast, who dropped into no man’s land, as did Vail, as the second group was not going fast enough, “and the first group was going too fast,” shared Vail.

Five runners from 6th position to 10th were all former UVic Vikes, including Vail, Brost, Thomas Riva, Anton Kuipers, and Thomas Oxland.

While Morin was the first over-40 masters athlete, Mutai, formerly from Kenya and now living in Vancouver, was the second master. He finished in 30:39. From the lead vehicle, Jim Hines with BC Athletics said that the race behind Allen, “was amazing to watch as the next few athletes fought hard to better each other right to the finish.”

Speaking of UVic Vikes, Madelyn Eybergen won again.

Women’s race

Two years removed from high jumping, Eybergen discovered she could run well. She joined the Vikes and began winning everything she competed in, including the national cross country championships, Pioneer 8K, indoor meets and the TC10K in her 10K road debut.

Eybergen clocked in at 32:44. She finished hard and fast, but very relaxed.

Asked if she can find a correlation between high jumping and distance running, she laughed, “No, I don’t think there is a correlation between the two. But I have the best coach in Canada in Hilary Stellingwerff.”

Katelyn Ayers took second in 33:17. Natasha Wodak took third in 34:10.

“I went out a little too hard and dug myself a hole that I could not get out of,” shared Ayers, who gushed about the event and the day.

She ran 33:55 in 2025 on the same course. Ayers will be looking to race the 5000m at Sound Running in Portland, Oregon in early May.

Wodak, who will be racing the Ottawa Marathon on Sunday, May 24, included a big workout around the TC10K, before and after the race. The former winner of the event has run 31:59 on the roads and 31:41.59 on the track. She is coming off a 32:47 performance from the Vancouver Sun Run, where she finished fourth.

“That was exactly where I thought I was at,” She said after the Sun Run, which bodes well for her Ottawa prospects.

Asked in advance of the race if she could run 32:47 in Victoria, Wodak said, “Not a chance,” and laughed.

Shoestrings…

Among the field were several athletes from the Greater Victoria area, who made a name for themselves in the past, including five-time XTERRA World Champion Melanie McQuaid and Olympian and multi-time Ironman winner Brent McMahon. Marilyn Arsenault, who holds a number of age-group event records and is a coach with the Vikes were all running.

Liam Donnelly, a member of the national triathlon team, is off to Asia for some sprint-distance competition. He was seen on the sidelines. Donnelly won the race in a new personal best of 29:48 in 2025. He is coming off a Bazan Bay 5K course record run, having taken Geoff Martinson’s 2012 record time of 14:12.

Scott Simpson, a former national 10,000m champion and TC10K winner, raced as a master over age 45. He ran a strong 33:43, bettering his 34:00 performance from the Sun Run, the prior Sunday. Over 50s, Mark Cryderman clocked in a time of 34:31, bettering his 16-year-old self from 37 years prior by three seconds.

Over 11,000 registered and more than 8000 finished the 2026 edition of the TC10K and 1K Kid’s Run.

Results

Top-10 men

Top-10 women