News

Wykes, Coolsaet shine in Big Apple

March 21, 2011
By Mihira Lakshman and Robert Kitz

Dylan Wykes moved to No. 3 all-time on the Canadian half-marathon list, while Reid Coolsaet also proved he’s in world-class shape, beating Americans Meb Keflezighi and Ryan Hall at the New York City Half-Marathon on Sunday.

Britain’s Mo Farrah won the event in 1:00:23, just ahead of Ethiopia’s Gebre Gebremariam and Galen Rupp of the United States. Wykes was the second-best North American runner, finishing 11th in 1:02:14. Coolsaet was 13th in 1:02:42.

Wykes and Coolsaet were with the leaders for the for first 5K, going through in just over 15:00. A pack that included the eventual medallists then dropped the Canadians, but Wykes continued to push forward. He ran most of the race alone, behind the leaders, but ahead of the chase pack, which included Coolsaet, Hall and Keflezighi.

“It felt great almost the whole way,” Wykes said. “Even though I was running by myself from mile four to 11, I actually felt like I was running fast, but within myself the whole time. And being able to run with, and even beat some of the top Americans was pretty satisfying.”

Wykes has recently moved to Vancouver, where the west coast weather allows him to be on the outdoor track much more than was possible while training in Ontario. Under coach Richard Lee, his training has been a mix of track workouts at 5K to 10K pace, along with tempo runs on the roads. He cited a workout of 3000m, 3 X 1000m, 2000m, 5 X 400m as a particularly strong workout that let him know he was fit heading into the race.

Both Wykes and Coolsaet recorded personal bests in New York, demonstrating that their fitness is on track for a fast fall marathon in Toronto.

“My foot and shin felt fine,” Coolsaet said in his blog. “I’m really hungry for the Montreal half-marathon on April 17.”

Click here to read the New York Times story on the race.