Barkley Marathons finisher receives Athlete of the Year award in B.C.
Ihor Verys, the first of five athletes to complete the 2024 Barkley Marathons in Tennessee, was named Athlete of the Year by Sport BC
Photo by:
courtesy of Ihor Verys
On March 6 in Vancouver, Ihor Verys of Chilliwack, B.C., was awarded the Best of BC award by Sport BC. Verys has made a name for himself on the North American ultra-trail scene with wins at some of the continent’s toughest ultras (including being the first finisher at the 2024 Barkley Marathons).
The Best of BC Award is supported by the province and presented every year to an individual or team that has represented British Columbia at the national or international level, in amateur or professional sport.
Verys is in good company; previous winners are former Team Canada soccer player Christine Sinclair, NHL players Carey Price and Joe Sakic and former NBA MVP Steve Nash.
“I’m really stoked that the sport of ultra running was recognized by Sport BC for the first time in 57 years,“ Verys told Canadian Running.
Verys, now 30, came to Canada in 2015 from his native Ukraine to study at Assiniboine College in Brandon, Man., and never returned. He burst on the Canadian trail-running scene in 2021 with a win at the Finlayson Arm 100K on Vancouver Island (his first ultra); later, he proved to be an ace at the backyard ultra style of racing (which, like the Barkley Marathons, was created by Gary Cantrell, a.k.a. Lazarus Lake), winning the inaugural B.C. Backyard Ultra in Salmon Arm in 2022 and going on to take Canada to a fourth-place finish at Big’s Backyard Ultra World Championship that year. (Verys was the last Canadian standing, with 67 yards or 449.57 km; he has, since then, far surpassed that distance )
Verys went on to win both the Sinister 7 100-miler in Blairmore, Alta., and the Fat Dog 120-miler in Manning Park, B.C., in 2022, and the Canadian Death Race in 2023. In 2024 he won the HURT 100 in Hawaii, and one year ago, he became the first Canadian ever to finish the Barkley, a notoriously difficult 100-miler in Tennessee to which only 40 participants are invited each year, and the first of five finishers that year. He has credited his early years working nights while studying during the day with his ability to withstand the sleep deprivation that is typically a feature of ultramarathon racing.
Verys spent the rest of 2024 nursing a knee injury, but says he expects to return to racing shortly.
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