Coolsaet wins Half in Vancouver

Reid Coolsaet

VANCOUVER, BC – 06/24/2012 – Olympic-bound athlete Reid Coolsaet finished first at the Scotiabank Vancouver Half-Marathon today, in his final run before the 2012 London Olympics. Elite runner Kip Kangogo and Olympic athlete Eric Gillis finished second place and third place respectively in an exciting finish to today’s half-marathon race. The Scotiabank Vancouver Half-Marathon & 5K race brought out more than 7,000 runners to the city’s scenic Stanley Park where thousands of spectators cheered and more than $630,000 was raised for 60 local charities.

Under cloudy skies, Reid Coolsaet, of Hamilton, ON, finished first with an impressive time of 1:03:16, just five seconds shy of the course record set by Patrick Nthiwa in 2007.  Lethbridge’s Kip Kangogo finished second crossing the finish line 12 seconds behind Coolsaet at 1:03:28. Eric Gillis, of Antigonish, NS, followed closely behind, finishing with a time of 1:03.56, in his final run before the Olympics. Krista Duchene of Guelph, ON, finished first in the women’s category and placed 13th overall at 1:14:03, followed by Kenya’s Anne Jelegat with a time of 1:16:43 and Calgary’s Lisa Harvey at 1:18:36.

“Today’s race was exciting for both the city of Vancouver and the sport of running and we saw Canada’s elite runners finish in top spots in their final race before the London Olympics,” said Clifton Cunningham, Race Director, Scotiabank Vancouver Half-Marathon & 5K. “Runners and spectators alike should be proud of their efforts for both the sport of running and in giving back to local causes through the Scotiabank Charity Challenge.”

As of press time, the Scotiabank Charity Challenge raised $630,000 and is well on its way to reaching the target goal of $650,000 for 60 local charities. This exceeds last year’s total of $575,000. In addition, Scotiabank will award $5,000 to the charity with the most runners, $5,000 to the charity with the highest amount of dollars raised per runner, and $5,000 to the charity that raises the most funds. Scotiabank will also donate $2,000 to the charity of the top individual fundraiser for a total of $17,000 in charity prizing.

“Scotiabank would like to thank everyone who ran for the sake of others this morning in the Scotiabank Vancouver Half-Marathon & 5K,” said Rob Wilkins, District Vice-President, Downtown Vancouver/Northern B.C. District. “We are proud that 100 percent of the proceeds raised in the Scotiabank Charity Challenge will go directly to the 60 participating charities involved in today’s event.”

Race Day Results:

Scotiabank Vancouver Half-Marathon Male

1. Reid Coolsaet (Hamilton, ON)                1:03:16
2. Kip Kangogo (Lethbridge, AB)               1:03:28
3. Eric Gillis (Antigonish, NS)                     1:03.56

Scotiabank Vancouver Half-Marathon Female

1. Krista Duchene (Guelph, ON)               1:14:03
2. Anne Jelegat (Kenya, KEN)                  1:16:43
3. Lisa Harvey (Calgary, AB)                      1:18:36

5K Male

1. Kenneth Muir (Vancouver, BC)            0:17:16
2. Danny Groening (Surrey, BC)              0:18.10
3. Nico Windler (Vancouver, BC)              0:18.14

5K Female

1. Mirabelle Tinio (Vancouver, BC)          0:19:17
2. Ann Hunter (Ratoath, Ireland)              0:21.17
3. Emily Keyes (Courtenay, BC)               0:21.43