BMO St. Patrick’s Day 5K sees course records

Although the event saw a busy post-race party with green beer, music and prizes, the elites still came out to run fast for the local BMO St. Patrick’s Day 5K in Vancouver.

Amid the St. Patrick’s Day races around the country, the BMO St. Patrick’s Day 5K saw stellar performances and course records in both the men’s and women’s races by Canadian athletes.

Geoff Martinson stretched out his win from the Bazan Bay 5K the previous weekend, taking another top finish in a course record time of 14:24, only four seconds ahead of runner-up Kelly Wiebe.

Martinson was also given the celebrity treatment, as organizers picked him up from his hotel and dropped him off at the startline in a 2014 Maserati Ghibli Q4.

Rachel Cliff also set a course record of 16:15 for the women, ahead of Natasha Wodak who came in second.

The race attracted about 1,800 runners and a fun, St. Patrick’s Day vibe.

Many of the elites will be racing again next weekend at the Modo Spring Run-Off 8K and some are preparing for the upcoming track season.