Last weekend I had a chance to photograph an exciting event taking place in Saskatoon – the annual marathon race. The Saskatchewan marathon started over 30 years ago, in distant 1979. In early 1970s the federal government introduced the ParticiPaction program, o promote the fitness of citizens through participation in sports and physical activity. Interest in long distance running was on the raise, influenced by the program as well as the genuine interest in improving personal well-being through practicing healthy lifestyles. The Saskatoon Road Runners Association was formed in 1975, and the group has been involved in organizing the event since its inception in 1979.
Runners of all levels take part in the annual race. This year the record number of people signed up: 1,578 for the full- and half-marathon 1,403 for the 10 km race, and 908 for the “Marafun”. For a total of 3,891 participants (visit the Saskatchewan marathon web site for more details and the race results).
A friend of mine, Saskatoon photographer Steve Hiscock asked me if I could help with photographing the race participants. Never being able to say no to interesting invitations, I showed up as instructed at 7 a.m. on Sunday morning. We were supposed to take 2 or 3 images of as many runners as possible. Resulting images were uploaded to the Marathom Photos web site, where people have an opportunity to order prints. What an experience. Over 7,200 frames in 5 hours is my personal record. Not bad for a landscape photographer, eh?
What I will always remember from this weekend, is an incredible enthusiasm and pride people showed for participating in the race. And an expression of relief and jubilation for being able to complete such a physically demanding event.
Here is a small selection of images from the 2012 Saskatchewan Marathon. A few more are posted on my Flickr photostream.
Start of the 10 km race
Along the race route
A well deserved congratulation
Final push, the end is in sight
Still enough energy left to jump over the finish line