Vancouver Sun Run: Thomas Fafard ran like he had a flight to catch ...

The 25-year-old from Quebec flew in Saturday night from Arizona, won the Sun Run Sunday morning and then flew back Sunday afternoon

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Published Apr 21, 2024  •  Last updated 1 hour ago  •  3 minute read

Thomas Farad from Repentigny, QC crosses the finish line to win the 2024 Vancouver Sun Run with a time of 28 min, 45 sec. Photo by NICK PROCAYLO /PNG

Thomas Fafard was here for a good Vancouver Sun Run time. He wasn’t here for a long time.

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Fafard, 25, flew into town Saturday night from a training camp in Flagstaff, Ariz., won the men’s division of the 40th rendition of the 10-kilometre road race Sunday morning, and then headed to the airport for a 3:30 p.m. flight back to Flagstaff.

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Fafard, who’s from Repentigny, Que., crossed the Vancouver Sun Run finish line in 28 minutes, 45 seconds, coming in 11 seconds ahead of men’s runner-up Thomas Broatch of Vancouver. 

“It’s a pretty short flight, so it’s not a big deal,” said Fafard, who’s been using that Flagstaff time to prepare for the upcoming track and field season. “And the legs felt pretty good this morning, so I guess that’s the way to do it.

“There is no time to waste at this level.”

Glynis Sim of Vancouver was the top female finisher Sunday with her 32:17, edging out two-time reigning Vancouver Sun Run women’s champion Leslie Sexton by eight seconds.  

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Leo Sammarelli of Vancouver won the wheelchair division, clocking in with a 31:08.

Fafard has been ranked as high as No. 85 in the world in the men’s 5,000 metres. He’s going back to Flagstaff for several weeks of training, and then it’s off to Europe. 

He’s contemplating competing at the Harry Jerome Meet at Swangard Stadium on June 15. His personal best in the 5,000 metres — 13:31.50 — came at the 2022 Jerome.

Representing Canada at a Summer Olympics remains the “big picture, the big goal.” He’s worn the Maple Leaf at events such as the Under-20 Pan American Games and at the North American, Central American and Caribbean championships (NACAC). 

“It’s ambitious, but I’ve got to believe it so I’ll do everything possible to try to make the team this summer,” Fafard said of Canada’s entry for the 2024 Paris Summer Olympics Games. “If it doesn’t happen, I’ll focus on the next cycle.

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“Today is a good starting point to the season, a sub-29:00 on the road in a strategic race. There is a lot that needs to be done.” 

Fafard was part of the Canadian team at the World Cross Country Championships in Belgrade, Serbia, in March. He came in 63rd. The Canadian women’s team featured Sim, 26, who came in 38th. There were over 100 competitors in the men’s race, over 85 in the women’s race.

Sim was a high school standout at Salmon Arm. She came in sixth in the girls 2,000-metre steeplechase at the World Youth Championships in Colombia in 2015. She moved on to competing for Arizona State University, but had to put her running career on hold because of recurring stress fractures. 

She took time off, returned to competing for UBC and won the 2022 U Sport nationals women’s cross-country race.

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After winning Sunday, she talked about how she loves running here because it’s very familiar. She also raved about the large crowd that assembled along the Vancouver Sun Run course.

“It was never silent out there,” she said.

Sim is prepping for track and field season as well and isn’t sure if she’ll get another road race in anytime soon.

“I do like the atmosphere,” she said of road race events. “It’s so fun.” 

Broatch, who’s also a UBC alum, finished third last year and fifth in 2022. 

Sammarelli won the wheelchair last year in 35:18. He’s a boxing coach, director of Boxing B.C. and the founder of Westcoast Wheelchair Adaptive Boxing. He said recently that his next goals include doing a full marathon and qualifying for the Boston Marathon.

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The Vancouver Sun Run attracted 45,571 runners, the largest turnout since 2014. 

There was a prize purse of $25,000 combined, with Fafard and Sim both bringing in $3,000 apiece as the top overall male and female  finishers and another $2,500 apiece as the top Canadian male and female finishers.

The Vancouver Sun Run’s charitable efforts have raised more than $3.4 million with over $73,457 raised in 2024 alone.

@SteveEwen

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