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Like Mother, Like Son – Matt Loiselle

Matt Loiselle Olympic hopefull for 2016

Olympic Marathon Hopeful Matt Loiselle racing the 2011 Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon.
Olympic Marathon Hopeful Matt Loiselle racing the 2011 Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon.

With a personal best of 2:16 from the 2011 Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon, Matt Loiselle is one of Canada’s up-and-coming stars in the marathon. The 28-year-old from Windsor, Ont., has set a goal of making the 2016 Olympic team. For the past four years, he has been a professional runner, sponsored by Brooks. He told Canadian Running that watching his mom run the Boston Marathon was a big influence on him.

When you competed for Central Michigan University in the NCAA, your specialty was the 3000m steeplechase. Why did you decide to move so quickly to the marathon after graduating?
The marathon was always an intriguing event to me, and I wanted to get into training for it right after graduating. It actually took me about two years after graduating to complete my first marathon race because I had to get used to the heavier training and mileage. My mom actually ran Boston in 2008 and I was there to watch. Just seeing the race and all the excitement surrounding it made me really want to be a part of something like that.

You joined the Brooks Marathon project in 2008, but it officially folded last year. What effect has this had on your training?
The fact that the sponsorship from Brooks has scaled down hasn’t changed my training at all. I’m training harder than ever. The free housing, vehicle, and performance money we received from the Marathon Project was key to helping me establish myself in Toronto. Over the past four years, I’ve been able to make more connections and receive other sponsorships, such as Lifespring Physiotherapy in Aurora, Ont., and an organic food and supplement sponsorship from Nature’s Emporium in Newmarket.

After studying accounting in university, are you getting a chance to put those skills to work?
I’ve actually been working at Nature’s Emporium since last fall doing some accounting work. Down the road when I get some time I’d like to pursue my CMA certification.

Do you like having a desk job, in addition to being a professional runner?
Absolutely. I find that having this job really gets me into a disciplined routine. I can get my runs in before and after work and do something constructive in between. It’s a little more tiring during marathon training where the mileage hits over 200K a week, but it definitely gets me into a good routine of getting to bed early and waking up early. I feel that I have a great opportunity to apply some of my university education and set up my career path for when my competitive running days are over. The ownership and my boss at Nature’s have been so supportive of my goals, not only with the sponsorship but also being flexible with my schedule to allow me to get training and races in.

You’ve recently started a coaching business. What do you enjoy most about working with beginner runners?
The coaching business is something I enjoy doing on the side. The website is called www.thegoodtimesrunning.com. I’ve worked with people of all levels and I really enjoy helping every single one of them. I take pride in helping beginner runners realize that they can run further and/or faster than they ever thought they could. I find that some people are scared of running, but when they actually give it a try, they love it. I really enjoy helping people reach their goals and seeing them gain self-confidence, whether they want to run a 10K or crack a three-hour marathon.

Matt Loiselle
Hometown: Windsor, Ont.
Club: Athletics Toronto
PBs: 3000m steeplechase 8:48.15; Road 10K 29:17; half-marathon 1:03:47, marathon 2:16:00
Accomplishments: Two-time Canadian half-marathon champion (2009, 2010)

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