Record holders lead 12-member Canadian squad into 1st world road running championships

Kieran Lumb isn't looking too far ahead before the final race of his impressive rookie season as a professional runner.

He spoke this week of wanting to "compete well" in the elite men's mile at the first World Athletics Road Running Championships on Sunday and is prioritizing placing over time. Lumb also didn't mention the possibility of qualifying for the Paris Olympics next summer.

"You never know how these mile [races] will play out," said the 2023 Canadian men's track champion in the outdoor 1,500 metres. "I'll use the opportunity to test myself and end [the season] hopefully on a high note."

Andy Powell was more direct when talking about his athlete and believes Lumb — the national record holder in the outdoor 3,000, pending ratification — will perform well on the streets of Riga, Latvia as part of a 12-member Canadian contingent.

"I like his chances," the University of Washington coach said over the phone from Seattle. "He's still coming on late in the [season] and with his strength, how wide the roads are [in Riga] and how the course is set up, I think people are going to have a hard time pulling away from him."

The 6:10 a.m. ET race will be live streamed on CBCSports.ca, the CBC Sports app and CBC Gem. Live coverage of the event begins at 4:20 a.m.

The 25-year-old Lumb, who turned pro in April and signed with Swiss running brand On, has been difficult to bet against this year. He set three personal bests during his final indoor season with the Huskies, including a 3:52.62 clocking over 1,609 metres in the mile, and three more outdoors — mile, 1,500 and 3,000.

According to World Athletics, athletes can achieve the automatic entry standard for the Paris Olympics in the 1,500 in the equivalent road running distance. To qualify, Lumb would need to run 3:50.40 on Sunday after going 3.53.83 outdoors on the track at a January meet hosted by UW.

"If he's healthy, he's got a great shot," Powell said when asked if Lumb would be part of Team Canada in Paris. "That's a realistic goal and expectation."

Indoor mile PB 'a shock' to coach

Lumb, who graduated in March, was among eight Husky men to run under four minutes in the mile at the January meet. They repeated the feat indoors on Feb. 26 in Boston, with the Canadian leading the way in 3:52.62.

"That was a shock to me," Powell said, adding he viewed Lumb as a cross-country or 10,000m track runner when the latter arrived at Washington with "good upside" in 2021.

"He can run well over 100 miles a week but [last Sunday] he ran 51 [seconds] no problem [to close a 1,500] so he's got some speed and endurance," noted Powell, who believes Lumb's best event is the 5,000. "He will run fast in the 5K at some point and break 13 minutes."

Powell also envisions the Vancouver native breaking the Canadian mile mark of 3:50.26 held by Kevin Sullivan since July 28, 2000.

Lumb, who built a strong aerobic base several years ago as a nationally ranked junior cross-country skier, didn't begin running on trails and the track until his late teens. At the University of British Columbia, he stood out in the 3,000, 5,000 and cross-country.

"I've really enjoyed focusing on the 1,500 and this has kind of been the first year," he told CBC Sports. "You can race it often, and I've grown to enjoy the experience of racing, as a whole."

Lumb said his inexperience in the distance showed at his debut World Athletics Championships last month in Budapest, Hungary, where he ran 3:36.66 for eighth in his heat but didn't qualify for the semifinals.

But Lumb was able to shake off any disappointment, delivering a 3:34.55 PB two weeks later in Padova, Italy. He then lowered his best in the 3,000 twice in four days to 7:36.46 in Zagreb, Croatia.

WATCH | Lumb shines in Croatia in another Canadian record effort:

Vancouver's Kieran Lumb breaks own Canadian 3,000m record

1 year ago

Duration 9:46

The Vancouver native finished sixth at the World Athletics Continental Tour stop in Zagreb with a time of 7:36.46.

"Everything past worlds is kind of a bonus. I don't feel burned out [late in the season] and it's going to be a cool event to be a part of [in Riga]," said Lumb, who trains with Sam Prakel of Des Moines, Iowa. The American is racing the mile Sunday and his 4:01.21 world record is expected to fall on a flat course in Latvia.

"It's a good field but not a crazy deep field," Lumb added, "so it could be a good opportunity for Prakel and I to place high."

Added Powell: "There's enough room on the course where he [Lumb] will be able to cover the late moves [by his opponents]. There are two 90-degree turns. He's going to stay wide and make a good push after the last one, which is about 750 metres [from the finish line]."

In the women's mile at 6 a.m. ET, Kenya's Faith Kipyegon will try for her third global title victory of the year in her road running debut after capturing the 1,500/5,000m double on the track at worlds. In June, the 29-year-old took down the world record in the women's 5,000 at the Meeting de Paris Diamond League meet a week after breaking the world mark in the 1,500.

Ben Flanagan, representing Canada in Sunday's elite men's 5K along with Thomas Fafard at 5:15 a.m. ET, said he's aiming to lower his 13:26 national record.

Season-best time in May

"And running under [Ben True's 2017] American record of 13:20 is an attainable, but ambitious, goal," the On Running client told CBC Sports. "It's a great opportunity for Canadians to get more international experience and set more national records."

Flanagan, 28, opened his outdoor track campaign in the 5,000m with a 13:13.97 PB in early May and then watched his times tail off. He didn't get out of the heats in his worlds debut, running 13:38.69 in a race that quickly turned tactical and slower than he anticipated.

"I prepared myself for a race that went out at 13-minute pace or faster, which worked," said the Kitchener, Ont., native. "If I was to do it again, I would have prepared to close [the race] in 3:58 instead of a four-minute mile because that would have been the difference in making the final."

Flanagan, who lives in Ann Arbor, Mich., is confident Sunday's race will go out fast, led by the Ethiopian duo of Berihu Aregawi and Yomif Kejelcha. Aregawi is the world record holder (12:49) on the road while Kejelcha boasts a season world-leading time of 12:50.

"It'll come down to experience, being smart and sure of my decisions, and not getting in over my head early, even though I want to mix it up with the best guys," said Flanagan, who is also the Canadian 10K record holder. "I'm going to be ready to close well and trust I'm a great road racer."

The best distance runners in the world will also compete for global honours in the half marathon in Riga, where all elite athletes will be joined by recreational runners from over 100 countries in mass races.

Canada roster

• Kieran Lumb — Vancouver (mile)
• Robert Heppenstall — Hamilton (mile)
• Regan Yee — South Hazelton, B.C. (mile)
• Glynis Sim — Vancouver (mile)
• Jessy Lacourse — Quebec City (5K)
• Julie-Anne Staehli — Lucknow, Ont. (5K)
• Ben Flanagan — Kitchener, Ont. (5K)
• Thomas Fafard — Repentigny, Que. (5K)
• Sasha Gollish — Toronto (half marathon)
• Branna MacDougall — Glenburnie, Ont. (half marathon)
• Justin Kent — Burnaby, B.C. (half marathon)
• Phil Parrot-Migas — London, Ont. (half marathon)