Trevor Hofbauer signs with Saucony

On Wednesday morning, Saucony announced that it has signed Canadian marathon champion and Olympian-to-be Trevor Hofbauer as a sponsored athlete. The 2:09:51 Calgary-based marathoner was previously unsponsored, and the new partnership comes just seven months out from his Olympic debut. Hofbauer qualified for the Tokyo Olympics with his win at the Canadian Marathon Championships (which doubled as the Canadian trials) in Toronto in 2019, where he ran his PB and the second-fastest time in national history.

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Hofbauer joins fellow Canadian marathoner Malindi Elmore on the Saucony team. Elmore, who signed with Saucony in November, is the national marathon record holder with a blazing-fast PB of 2:24:50 that she ran in Houston in early 2020. For Saucony, adding Hofbauer to the team was not a difficult choice. His win in 2019 was the second Canadian marathon crown of his career, and he also won the national half-marathon championships in Calgary in 2018.

Hofbauer didn’t race in 2020 due to COVID-19, but he had a great run from 2017 to 2019, winning a Canadian championship each year. Now into 2021, he will be looking to get back to his winning ways with his new support crew as he works toward the Olympics. 

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“Saucony stood out to me because they made me feel part of their family right off the bat,” Hofbauer says. “They made me feel valued, which was the biggest deal for me when finding a partnership.” Hofbauer says he was also drawn to the company because of its commitment to sustainability and its team of strong female leaders. He also notes that Saucony’s support for local running businesses impressed him long before this partnership was discussed.

“I worked at Strides Running Store for five-plus years, and seeing how hard Saucony works and how valued they make local businesses feel, that was huge,” Hofbauer says. And of course, Saucony’s products influenced his decision to sign on with the team as well.

“I love the Triumph,” he says, referring to the company’s neutral and well-cushioned trainer. “I log so many kilometres in those. I got a pair in December 2019 and I’ve worn them ever since. I probably have 1,000 kilometres in them and they’re still rocking.” 

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Hofbauer says he is thrilled to sign with Saucony, which he says is yet another example of the company’s support for runners and the running community in Canada. “Without the support of major brands like Saucony, it doesn’t allow Canadian athletics to progress,” he says. “Their support goes a long way in helping Canadians to improve and to continue to improve on the international stage.” Hofbauer himself is ready to compete internationally yet again, and although he says he doesn’t have any races lined up for early 2021, he’s eagerly awaiting the summer when he gets the chance to toe the line at the Olympic marathon in Japan.