The Canadian mountain running team had a very successful World Mountain Running Championships. The Canadian men finished in the top 10 for the first time since before the race became an IAAF Championship in 2009. The Canadian women had an excellent finish as well, finished 12th in an unusually competitive year of 17 teams.

The Canadian men were led by Kris Swanson (Tumbler Ridge, BC) in 36th position and David Le Porho (Montreal, QC) in 42nd position. Swanson went out hard and held on for a great finish in tough conditions. After the race, Swanson said he was proud of his effort and he was glad that he executed a solid race plan. He "left it all out on the course". Le Porho was battling a cold through the race, but hung on for a strong finish. He was very happy to improve upon his finish from last year under less-than-ideal conditions this year.

Jeff Gosselin (Quebec, QC) and Mark Vollmer (Edmonton/Guelph) finished together in 68th and 69th positions, respectively. Gosselin started off charging and hung on for a strong finish. Gosselin felt that the long downhills were suited more for 10k runners with fast turnover and were challenging for someone like him with trail running credentials. Vollmer proved his consistency in his sixth time at the mountain running championships by ensuring the Canadian team of a top ten finish.

The Canadian men had no margin of error in their finish, with two team (Ireland and Russia) finishing within one point behind. Sean Chester (Victoria, BC) and Calum Neff (Calgary, AB) rounded out the Canadian team finishing in 92nd and 102nd, respectively. Chester improved significantly from his 2007 placing but is looking forward to improving on this finish in future years. Neff is hungry after his first mountain race to return to the trails.

The Canadian women's team had one of their strongest runs in a number of years. Meggan Franks (Athabasca, AB) led the Canadian team in 44th position and Sarah Bergeron Larouche (Quebec, QC) finished close behind in 46th position. Franks and Larouche employed opposite strategies, with Larouche going out hard, and Franks going out more conservatively. Franks says that she was happy with how the team worked together during the race. Larouche enjoyed her debut on the world stage in mountain running. She enjoyed the strong team spirit the Canadian team showed throughout the championship weekend. Melanie Nadeau (Bromont, QC) and Shannon Penway (North Vancouver, BC) finished close together in 56th and 57th positions, respectively. Nadeau used her strength from competitive cycling to power up the hills. Penway described the race as "awesome and painful".

The junior men were well-represented by Mathieu Ladouceur who finished in 57th position out of 68 competitors. Ladouceur ran with the savvy of a veteran, running very consistent times for both laps of the two-lap course. He also showed great resilience after only recently overcoming a foot injury prior to the race. He will be a man to watch in future mountain races!

The course featured a long downhill section followed by two challenging and steep uphills separated by a short, flatter section. The initial descent, followed by up, made the race even more challenging than the usual up-and-down order, as the athletes found that their legs were fatigued from the descent even before the uphill sections started. It was around 20 degrees Celsius during the race with nothing but clear, blue skies on the beautiful Polish summit.

The Canadian team was very happy with the results from the weekend and also with the excellent camaraderie shared with every member of the team.

Full results from the race can be found here: RESULTS