CHEBOI AND AREGAWI WIN COLD, WET 2026 OTTAWA MARATHON

Rain, standing water, and temperatures near 10C greeted the field at the 50th edition of the Tamarack Ottawa Marathon on May 24. Elvis Cheboi of Kenya won the men's race in 2:09:22, and Abeba Aregawi of Sweden took the women's title in 2:23:12 in her first marathon.

The conditions held both races back from the organizers' pre-race target times, which had been set against course records of 2:06:04 for men and 2:22:17 for women. Pacemakers ran conservatively, and the men's lead group stayed large deep into the race.

A late surge settles the men's race

Eight contenders and three pacemakers reached halfway together in 1:04:24. The group held its shape until the pacing duties ended near 35 kilometers, at which point Rory Linkletter of Canada and then Cheboi moved to the front.

Cheboi pressed the pace over the closing kilometers, running 2:59 for the 41st kilometer. Only Ethiopia's Gizealew Ayana could stay with him, and Cheboi pulled clear in the final sprint to win by four seconds. Ayana finished second in 2:09:26.

Linkletter took third in 2:09:43, his second straight podium finish in Ottawa. The Canadian had run 2:06:04 at the Boston Marathon one month earlier and repeated the spring double he completed in 2025, when he placed second here.

"Honestly, I felt like it was a beautiful day to run a marathon," Linkletter said. "I felt like the competition brought the best out of the entire field."

Afework Mesfin of Ethiopia placed fourth in 2:09:57, with Gebretsadik Abraha fifth in 2:10:05. American Patrick Cullen finished ninth in a personal-best 2:13:18, a time that qualified him for the 2028 United States Olympic Trials.

Aregawi wins on debut

Aregawi, 35, came to Ottawa as a track athlete, a silver medalist in the 1500 meters at the 2012 London Olympics and the 2013 world indoor champion. Running her first marathon, she sat in a four-woman lead pack that passed halfway in 1:10:54.

The race turned after 30 kilometers, when Ethiopia's Tahir Kuftu and a pacemaker dropped Aregawi. Left to run alone and believing she was in second, Aregawi instead reeled Kuftu back in and pulled away over the final kilometers.

She finished in 2:23:12, more than two minutes ahead of Kuftu, who placed second in 2:25:33. The winning time stood as a Swedish national record. Betty Chepkorir of Kenya took third in 2:25:51.

Elissa Legault of Quebec was the first Canadian woman home, ninth in 2:29:13, within eight seconds of her personal best. She moved ahead of national record holder Natasha Wodak in the second half; Wodak finished 11th in 2:33:15 after battling cramps.

The weekend drew more than 40,000 entrants across all events, the highest post-pandemic total for the Tamarack Ottawa Race Weekend. For the longer view, see the history of the Ottawa Marathon and its five decades in Canada's capital.