It was déjà vu on a wet and windy Sunday at North America’s oldest road race, as Rachel Hannah and Phil Parrot-Migas successfully defended their 2024 titles at the Around the Bay 30K in Hamilton.
Parrot-Migas, from London, Ont., trailed Mississauga’s Sergio Raez Villanueva by 90 seconds at the halfway mark, but managed an impressive comeback in the second half to secure the win for the second year in a row, finishing in 1:37:30. On the latter half of the course—known to be more challenging—Parrot-Migas ran it two minutes faster than his opening 15K split.
Raez Villanueva held on for second place, crossing the line in 1:39:02, while Sudbury, Ont.’s Caleb Beland rounded out the podium in third. Raez Villanueva, the reigning BMO Vancouver Marathon champion, ran in preparation to defend his title at that race in early May.
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Hannah, who is from Port Elgin, Ont, faced stiff competition from Hamilton’s Erin Mawhinney in the women’s 30K. The two battled closely until Hannah pulled ahead in the final 10K, taking the victory in 1:47:36. Mawhinney finished 35 seconds later to take second place, while London, Ont.’s Shannen Murray took third with a time of 1:56:25.
This was Hannah’s second Ontario road race win of the season. Earlier in the month, she also won the Chilly Half Marathon in Burlington.
This year marked the 101st official edition of the historic road race, drawing approximately 7,000 finishers across four race distances (30K, 15K, 10K and 5K.) Notably, the event featured a new start and finish line near Liuna Station in downtown Hamilton, as its traditional venue at FirstOntario Centre is currently undergoing renovations.
For full race results, click here.
