Kenya’s Albert Korir and Mercy Chelangat triumph in Ottawa

In the men’s race, Albert Korir took top spot in the full marathon with a time of 2:08:22. The Kenyan broke off from Canada’s Rory Linkletter, Ethiopia’s Demeke Tesfaye, and CJ Albertson of the US, running on his own for much of the last half of the race. It was Korir’s first competition this year due to an ankle injury. Korir won the 2023 New York City Marathon and captured the title of the 2019 edition of the Ottawa marathon.

Linkletter, from Calgary, came 2nd in 2:08:31, putting some pressure on Korir during the last several kilometres. He had placed 6th at the 2025 Boston Marathon last month.

Kenya’s Mercy Chelangat was the fastest woman marathoner, finishing in 2:23:33 in her marathon debut. Although Meseret Gebre of Ethiopia led for much of the race, Chelangat overtook her around the 35 kilometre mark, running by herself for the rest of the race. Anne Marie Comeau was the top Canadian woman, placing 4th in 2:33:10.

Korir and Chelangat will both take home CAD 20,000 (12,800 EUR) for their first place finishes.

The Tartan Ottawa International Marathon got a new route this year. The 42.2 km course started at Ottawa City Hall, taking runners west along Wellington, before looping around across the Chaudière Bridge, through the streets of Gatineau and back over the Alexandra bridge, then along Sussex and down Colonel By Drive before circling back up along the west side of the Rideau Canal to the finish line on Queen Elizabeth Drive.

Along the way, runners were motivated by thousands of cheering spectators as well as local bands, DJs and community groups. Spectators made plenty of noise along the course, thanks to official cowbells provided by Kal Tire. This year, 27 Kal Tire Cheer Stations lined the routes of the Tartan Ottawa International Marathon and Ottawa Half Marathon presented by Desjardins.

Fundraising continued to be a critical part of the Tamarak Ottawa Race Weekend, with more than 80 local and national charities taking part in this year’s Desjardins Charity Challenge. Last year, more than 1 million CAD was raised for charity over the two-day event. So far this year, the Challenge has raised CAD 911,000 (583,000 EUR).

Ottawa’s Mayor, Mark Sutcliffe, was one of the hundreds of marathon runners fundraising this year. He ran in support of Harmony House, the city’s shelter for women and children escaping abuse. His efforts have so far raised more than CAD 15,254 in support of their programs.

Ottawa’s Michael O’Brien ran the marathon with the goal of raising CAD 20,000 for CHEO’s Cardiology Department. He not only met that goal, he surpassed it, raising almost CAD 45,000. This was a very personal quest for O’Brien. His son was just days old, he was diagnosed with two congenital heart defects. Participating in the Desjardins Charity Challenge was O’Brien’s way of thanking CHEO for the lifesaving medical care it has provided his son, and thousands of other children and youth.

Montreal’s Olivier Laliberté also ran in support of sick children. But it isn’t the only marathon he is running for the cause. He has pledged to complete a marathon a month for the entire year to raise funds for CHU Ste-Justine Foundation in Montreal. The Tartan Ottawa International Marathon was the fifth marathon he has completed so far in 2025.
Running with a purpose

Although Ottawa’s Cameron Davies ran today’s full marathon in a time of 3:17:40, you won’t find his name on the list of finishers. That’s because Davies ran in remembrance of a very special member of the Ottawa running community, Dave Henderson. He died earlier this year after a battle with multiple sclerosis and cancer. Henderson was a frequent participant at Tamarack Ottawa Race Weekend and deeply admired within the running community.

On a lighter note, Gatineau’s Radwan Makboul set a world record in today’s half marathon – by running the entire race in a pair of Crocs. The previous Guinness Book of World Records for the fastest half marathon ever run in Crocs was 2:01:52. Today, Makboul beat that record, finishing the Ottawa Half Marathon in an impressive time of 1:57:59.