Niagara Falls International Marathon

Niagara Falls International Marathon
DateOctober
LocationBuffalo, US–Niagara Falls, Canada
Event typeRoad
DistanceMarathon
Established1974 (50 years ago) (1974)
Official siteNiagara Falls International Marathon

The Niagara Falls International Marathon is an annual marathon running competition from Buffalo, New York, United States to Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada, first held in 1974.

It is one of the few marathons in the world that starts in one country and finishes in another. Some other marathons cross international borders but return to the start, like the Monaco Marathon and the Unionsmarathon. The Niagara Falls International Marathon passes a border control, while the mentioned European borders have no border control thanks to the Schengen Union. The participants of the Niagara Falls Marathon have to show passport or NEXUS card at the start, which will be given back at the finish line or kept by the racer during the race.[1]

History

The marathon was first held on October 26, 1974, as the Skylon International Marathon, with Jesse Kregal as founder and race director.[2][3][4] The race was named the Buffalo Niagara Falls International Marathon from 1983 to 1986.[2]

In 1985, runners were led off the course, and used multiple different routes to get back on the course, resulting in unusual times and placements.[2]

The marathon had a ten-year break from 1987 to 1996 before it was relaunched in 1997 as the Niagara Falls Marathon. From 1998 to 2008, it was known as the Casino Niagara International Marathon.[2]

The course records are held by Peter Pfitzinger, who ran 2:17:10 in 1980, and Nicole Stevenson of Canada, whose time of 2:37:09 in 2004 is the women's record.[2]

The 2020 edition of the race was cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic.[5][6]

Course

External image
image icon Course map of full marathon in 2018[7]

The marathon begins in Buffalo, New York at the Albright-Knox Art Gallery. The first 6.5 kilometers (4.0 mi) are along the historic parkways of Buffalo before crossing the Peace Bridge into Fort Erie, Ontario, Canada. The remainder of the route is in Canada. After a very brief segment following the Queen Elizabeth Way, the route curves south and then north again along the Niagara Parkway, a landscaped road which winds along the Niagara River. Kilometer 42, the end of the race, faces the Niagara Falls on the U.S.-Canada international border in the city of Niagara Falls, Ontario.

Winners

Key:   Course record

Ed. Year Men's winner Time[a] Women's winner Time[a] Rf.
1 1974  Russell Pate (USA) 2:22:53  Ellen Turkel (USA) 2:58:16 [2]
2 1975  Marty Sudzina (USA) 2:23:16  Eleanor Thomas (CAN) 3:16:18 [2]
3 1976  Bill Stewart (USA) 2:24:01 Patricia Hall 2:58:49 [2]
4 1977  Richard Hughson (CAN) 2:20:31  Susan Kahler (USA) 3:00:11 [2]
5 1978  Carl Hatfield (USA) 2:17:21  Jacqueline Gareau (CAN) 2:57:01 [2]
6 1979  David Smith (USA) 2:17:30.1  Virginia Kraft (USA) 2:52:18 [2]
7 1980  Peter Pfitzinger (USA) 2:17:10  Leslie Watson (GBR) 2:54:57 [2]
8 1981  Terry Stanley (USA) 2:18:50  Nancy Mieszczak (USA) 2:40:48 [2]
9 1982  Terry Stanley (USA) 2:22:18  Heather Clemenson (CAN) 2:58:49 [2]
10 1983  Bernie Prabucki (USA) 2:21:28  Vicki Scanlon (CAN) 2:56:38 [2]
11 1984  Rick Mannen (CAN) 2:19:40  Deborah Dye (USA) 2:55:18 [2]
12 1985  Mark Coleman (USA) 2:30:29  Charlene MacDonald (CAN) 3:07:20 [2]
13 1986  Kazuya Nishimoto (JPN) 2:17:35  Maria Grazia Navacchia (ITA) 2:50:49 [2]
— — not held from 1987 to 1996 [2]
14 1997  Glen Marttila (CAN) 2:37:53  Katie Dosser (CAN) 2:55:41 [2]
15 1998  Brett Forgesson (BER) 2:39:59  Glenda Morris (CAN) 3:06:31 [2][8]
16 1999  Smartex Tambala (MAW) 2:29:13  Eriko Asai (JPN) 2:50:48 [2]
17 2000  Joseph Maina (KEN) 2:21:45.2  Danuta Bartoszek (CAN) 2:38:29.8 [2]
18 2001  Jean-Paul Niyonsaba (BDI) 2:24:28.5  Danuta Bartoszek (CAN) 2:46:42.4 [2]
19 2002  Shingirai Badza (ZIM) 2:27:53.5  Cindy Keeler (USA) 2:50:18.3 [2]
20 2003  Wilson Komen (KEN) 2:23:13.8  Leslie Carson (CAN) 2:54:25.5 [2]
21 2004  Moses Cheserek (KEN) 2:22:22.0  Nicole Stevenson (CAN) 2:37:08.6 [2][9]
22 2005  Matthew McInnes (CAN) 2:21:46.4  Nicole Stevenson (CAN) 2:46:41.7 [2]
23 2006  Simon Njoroge (KEN) 2:18:12.9  Elena Rozhko (UKR) 2:43:16.1 [2]
24 2007  Thomas Omwenga (KEN) 2:33:12.5  Louise Voghel (CAN) 3:02:36.3 [2]
25 2008  Matt Loiselle (CAN) 2:27:33.2  Elizabeth Primrose (CAN) 2:55:26.6 [2]
26 2009  Andrew Smith (CAN) 2:27:53.9  Tara Quinn (CAN) 2:46:40.9 [2]
27 2010  Steve Bohan (CAN) 2:27:48.1  Jill Gamble (CAN) 2:56:10.8 [2]
28 2011  Brendan Kenny (CAN) 2:28:47.7  Meggan Franks (CAN) 2:52:17.8 [2]
29 2012  Bernard Arasa (KEN) 2:26:04.1  Paula Wiltse (CAN) 2:51:57.5 [2]
30 2013  Lucas McAneney (CAN) 2:22:41.6  Paula Wiltse (CAN) 2:48:54.1 [2]
31 2014  Lucas McAneney (CAN) 2:27:58.0  Stephanie Strittmatter (USA) 2:58:02.8 [2]
32 2015  Taylor Kraayenbrink (CAN) 2:30:55  Paulina Golic (POL) 2:53:11 [2]
33 2016  David Savard-Gagnon (CAN) 2:30:32  Lindsay Moreau (CAN) 3:17:28 [2][10]
34 2017  Stuart Galloway (CAN) 2:51:07  Al Tufano (USA) 3:29:14 [2][11]
35 2018  Kyle Greig (GBR) 2:28:45  Courtney Laderer (USA) 2:59:08 [12][13]
36 2019  Tom Anderson (USA) 2:44:12  Cassandra Tomas (CAN) 3:18:20 [14][15][16]
— 2020 cancelled due to coronavirus pandemic [5]
— 2021
37 2022  Alex Yu (CAN) 2:35:13  Tiffany Newell (CAN) 2:52:24 [17]
38 2023  Alex Yu (CAN) 2:37:08  Wendy Rading (CAN) 3:10:09 [18]

See also

Notes

  1. ^ a b h:m:s

References

  1. ^ Frequently Asked Questions
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z aa ab ac ad ae af ag ah ai aj ak al am an Niagara Falls International Marathon. Association of Road Racing Statisticians (October 23, 2011). Retrieved October 25, 2011.
  3. ^ "Blogs & Media – Niagara Falls 5k, 10k, Half & International Marathon".
  4. ^ "Archive.ph".
  5. ^ a b "Niagara Falls 5k, 10k, Half & International Marathon – Run to the bri…".
  6. ^ "Niagara Falls INTL Marathon on Instagram: "After waiting as long as possible and considering all options for the Niagara Falls races, we've made the difficult decision to cancel our 2020 event. With a high degree of uncertainty surrounding the status of the COVID-19 virus, the uncertainty of what public gatherings will be allowed and the health of our runners it is not worth the risk. We look forward to hosting you again when conditions are hopefully more favourable on October 24 weekend in 2021"".
  7. ^ "Marathon – Niagara Falls 5k, 10k, Half & International Marathon".
  8. ^ "Athlete Profile: Brett Forgesson".
  9. ^ "Casino Niagara International Marathon". March 2005.
  10. ^ "David Savard-Gagnon, marathonien | Vidéos | ICI Radio-Canada.ca".
  11. ^ "Here Are the Boston Marathon Runners from Columbia". April 15, 2019.
  12. ^ "Results". results.raceroster.com.
  13. ^ "Kyle GREIG | Profile | World Athletics".
  14. ^ "Results". results.raceroster.com.
  15. ^ "Club Records".
  16. ^ "Celebrating environmentally-conscious people".
  17. ^ "Results Niagara Falls 5k, 10k, Half & International Marathon 2022". results.raceroster.com. October 23, 2022. Retrieved January 1, 2024.
  18. ^ "Niagara Falls International Marathon - Marathon". Sportstats. October 22, 2023. Retrieved January 1, 2024.