Watson, Sexton win 93rd Boxing Day 10-Miler

Rob Watson capped off a very busy year by winning one of Canada’s most historic races, the Boxing Day 10-Miler in Hamilton, Ont.

The Vancouver-based runner was back in his hometown of London, Ont. and decided to take the two hour trip east to Hamilton to cap off a huge year.

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Watson ran four marathons in less than seven months in 2013, beginning with an 11th place finish at the Boston Marathon in April. He then went on to become the Canadian champion at Ottawa Race Weekend, before heading to Moscow to represent Canada at the world championships. He ran his fourth marathon in Toronto, where he managed to squeeze out a moderate personal best of 2:13:29.

Watson won comfortably in 49:52, 42 seconds ahead of Toronto’s Lucas McAneney. Berhanu Degefa was third in 51:17.

Fellow Londoner Leslie Sexton capped off a strong 2013 by winning the women’s race in 58:00. Lisa Avery finished in second, 41 seconds back.

The Boxing Day 10-Miler has been run in various incarnations since 1920. It started as a New Year’s Day race before settling into become an annual post-Christmas Day tradition in 1972.