'Sudbury Rocks' rocks the downtown core once more
The running shoes were laced, the bibs were pinned and it was a beautiful morning for a race on Sunday as the Sudbury Rocks Race, Run or Walk Marathon returned as an in-person event in the city’s the downtown core.
Sudburians turned out in droves in the city's downtown core to celebrate the Sudbury Rocks marathon returning to in-person racing and to raise money for cancer research. (Ian Campbell/CTV News Northern Ontario)The last few years were virtual because of the Covid-19 pandemic.
"Golly, in March 2020 we saw our world changed and we still hoped that year to be a feet-on-the-ground run, we've had three virtual runs since,” said race founder Vince Perdue.
“(The) 2020 was well-attended from afar, 2021 slightly less, 2022 drastically less so we were wondering what are we doing in 2023. Are we bringing it back, does the community want us to be here? And as you can see, the community was waiting with open arms to have a race downtown again so we are pretty ecstatic."
As of Saturday, they were sitting at somewhere between 1,200 and 1,300 fully paid registrants which was roughly 100 down from 2019.
Perdue told CTV News that for him it is a very personal thing. He lost two people close to him in 2020 including the original founder of the race.
"I never expected to lose my wife in the same year and so the 10k is dedicated to Lise, the whole race is dedicated to Steve and Lise. It's very important to me and it's obviously deep in my heart," he said.
Participants couldn't get over the weather. The temperature was forecasted to hit 30°C later in the afternoon.
Kyle Marcus is Downtown Sudbury’s executive director. Saturday saw Marcus attempt running his first-ever 5 kilometre race.
"It's wonderful to see this amount of families and people and everyone out and enjoying downtown. I know our membership is ready for the influx of people downtown," said Marcus.
"It's phenomenal, all the energy that is out there, the 1,300 participants coming back to downtown to do this race. It's an awesome feeling to see the community getting back together to support such a great cause," said Mayor Paul Lefebvre.
"This is up there, with one of the best years they've ever had."
- Download the CTV News app now and get local alerts on your device
- Get local breaking news and updates sent to your email inbox
Among those running were Chantal Giroux and 23 of her closest family members. They were running in honour of her dad Al, a regular half-marathon runner who passed away tragically earlier this year.
"He ran this half marathon for many years in a row… our family got together and had wonderful t-shirts made as a tribute to my dad and walk the 5-K together," she said.
"It's been a fantastic experience, thank you to all those who organized it."
Kyle Hanley won the 5-kilometre race.
"Oh this is fantastic - it's a community event,” said Hanley.
“It gets people motivated with a goal in mind for May to run, gets us all out in the sunshine and having fun.”
The race also drew out some of the more notables or 'celebrities' in the city who came out to help raise awareness and funds for the cause.
For Pure Country 91.7's Bryan Cooper, affectionately called ‘Coop,’ the cause is near and dear to him and his family.
Pure Country's Bryan Cooper ran the 5-kilometre race Saturday. (Ian Campbell/CTV News Northern Ontario)"I wanted to cross the line and just support the cause," he said.
"Northern Cancer Foundation particularly, any cancer foundation is personal hit home scenario. My Dad passed away when I was 7-years-old after a short but very tough battle with cancer and so anytime I have an opportunity to take part in an event like this and encourage others to take part and really take an hour out of their day just to show support for an amazing organization like the Northern Cancer Foundation and so I'm really happy to do it.”
Sudbury MPP Jamie West said you could feel the excitement with the event returning to an in-person race.
Sudbury MPP Jamie West competed in the 2023 Sudbury Rocks Race, Run or Walk marathon on May 28/23. (Ian Campbell/CTV News Northern Ontario)"It's great to see all the people come together,” said West.
“You know the last two years doing it virtually, I would challenge Coop from Pure Country to try and raise awareness but it wasn't the same, we'd time each other but to see people here and just the happiness of it. I jogged part and had to walk part, there were people who walked it. I watched moms pushing carriages passing me and this is great. The energy you see in the downtown core is awesome."
Organizers said they anticipate when it's all said and done, they will have raised at least $50,000 for the Northern Cancer Foundation.
For more information on this event, visit their Facebook page.
CTV News and Pure Country 91.7 are both owned by Bell Media.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'Anything to win': Trudeau says as Poilievre defends meeting protesters
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is accusing Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre of welcoming 'the support of conspiracy theorists and extremists,' after the Conservative leader was photographed meeting with protesters, which his office has defended.
What is changing about Canada's capital gains tax and how does it impact me?
The federal government's proposed change to capital gains taxation is expected to increase taxes on investments and mainly affect wealthy Canadians and businesses. Here's what you need to know about the move.
'My stomach dropped': Winnipeg man speaks out after being criminally harassed following single online date
A Winnipeg man said a single date gone wrong led to years of criminal harassment, false arrests, stress and depression.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Pilot reported fire onboard plane carrying fuel, attempted to return to Fairbanks just before crash
One of the two pilots aboard an airplane carrying fuel reported there was a fire on the airplane shortly before it crashed and burned outside Fairbanks, killing both people on board, a federal aviation official said Wednesday.
'One of the single most terrifying things ever': Ontario couple among passengers on sinking tour boat in Dominican Republic
A Toronto couple are speaking out about their 'extremely dangerous' experience on board a sinking tour boat in the Dominican Republic last week.
Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
7 surveillance videos linked to extortions of South Asian home builders in Edmonton released
The Edmonton Police Service has released a number of surveillance videos related to a series of extortion cases in the city now dubbed 'Project Gaslight.'
Ukraine uses long-range missiles secretly provided by U.S. to hit Russian-held areas, officials say
Ukraine for the first time has begun using long-range ballistic missiles provided secretly by the United States, bombing a Russian military airfield in Crimea last week and Russian forces in another occupied area overnight, American officials said Wednesday.