Admitting you walked throughout a race doesn’t sometimes earn you bragging rights. However for Richmond, B.C.’s Evan Dunfee, “strolling tempo” means one thing solely completely different–like 4:13/km-over-42.2-km completely different. On Sunday, the three-time Olympian accomplished the Vancouver Marathon in a jaw-dropping 2:58:57, regardless of not feeling 100 per cent.
“I’m working actually laborious on being higher at being happy with myself, and this was an effort that I’m happy with,” Dunfee wrote on Instagram. “Sub-three-hour marathoner–that has a very nice ring to it.”
Dunfee practically deserted his sub-three-hour objective earlier than the race even started. “Wakened feeling completely horrible,” he wrote on Strava after warmup. “I believe operation sub-three may flip into operation ‘don’t be silly and drop out if want be.’”
However he didn’t drop out, and as a substitute, the 34-year-old drew inspiration from the 25,000 racers round him. “I used to be spurred alongside by the superb athletes I obtained to race alongside, the unbelievable individuals lining the streets cheering and the picturesque course,” he wrote.
His pacing was practically excellent–1:28:53 for the primary half, and 1:30:04 for the second. “My nervous system was fairly fried and I misplaced my legs round 28km,” he stated post-race. “[I] held it collectively regardless of not having the ability to really feel a lot. Aerobically, [it] felt fairly good although.” Though 42.2K isn’t at the moment a regular race-walking distance, World Athletics has introduced that beginning in 2026, the 20K and 35K races shall be changed by half-marathon and marathon distances.
The sort of efficiency isn’t solely out of character for Dunfee. In March, he shattered the world file within the males’s 35-kilometre race stroll, clocking 2:21:40 on the prestigious Dudinska 50 in Dudince, Slovakia. That got here solely a month after capturing the North American 20K race stroll file in Australia. Simply final week, Dunfee additionally walked the 10K Vancouver Solar Run in a speedy 38:17.
The athlete additionally holds the Canadian data for the 50K, 10,000m and 5,000m race walks.