Canadian marathon trio misses Paris Olympic qualifying standard in Houston

Canadians Leslie Sexton and national record holder Natasha Wodak finished less than two minutes shy of the automatic entry standard for the Paris Olympic women's marathon on Sunday in Houston. Sexton was eighth among elite women in two hours 28 minutes 14 seconds while Wodak, who also lives in Vancouver, clocked 2:28:42 for ninth.

The standard is 2:26:50, with the qualifying window closing April 30 ahead of the Aug. 11 marathon in France. Halfway through the 42.2 kilometre race, Wodak (1:12:08) and Sexton (1:13:17) were on pace to qualify for Paris. On the men's side, Tristan Woodfine also ran strong for the majority of the race but also missed the 2:08:10 Olympic standard, placing sixth in a personal best 2:10:39.

Two other Canadians also set PBs in the men's half marathon: Calgary born Rory Linkletter (1:01:02, sixth) and Thomas Fafard of Repentigny, Que(1:02:19, 12th). Linkletter held the Canadian record for nine months in 2022, posting a personal best 1:01:08 in Houston ..