Natasha Wodak won鈥檛 officially be counted as among the 75 Island or Island-based athletes expected to compete in the delayed Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics next summer. But the North Vancouver resident is still a Prairie Inn Harrier at heart.
Wodak, a member of the Saanich Peninsula-based Harriers club, recorded a Canadian all-time second-best women鈥檚 marathon clocking of 2:26:19 this week to get well under the Olympic qualifying standard of 2:29:30 for the Tokyo Games.
Sara Hall became the second fastest American woman to run a marathon in taking the female title in 2:20:32 in the Marathon Project race in Chandler, Arizona. The Rio 2016 Olympics 10,000-metres runner Wodak placed fourth in only her second marathon and the first she has contested since 2013, lopping nearly nine minutes off her previous time.
鈥淚 was nervous and anxious because I haven鈥檛 raced a marathon in seven years and it was unfamiliar and uncharted territory for me. I wondered if my body could handle it,鈥� said Wodak, who has begun a 14-day quarantine after crossing the border back into sa国际传媒
鈥淚t all ended up working out great. I knew I was going to have a good day from the start. The conditions were ideal,鈥� added Wodak, who is coached by 1984 L.A. Olympics 3,000-metre bronze-medallist Lynn Kanuka.
Wodak is clearly comfortable on the road at any distance and has won the GoodLife Fitness Victoria Half-Marathon, and Saanich Peninsula Pioneer 8K on seven occasions.
鈥淭here is no distance Natasha really can鈥檛 run,鈥� said Bob Reid, currently treasurer of the Prairie Inn Harriers, but long the spiritual leader of the club.
鈥淪he trains for everything and has an appetite for racing everything, from on the track to the road to cross-country. And she does them all well. She never misses an Island race and has supported and raced the sa国际传媒 10K, GoodLife Fitness Half-Marathon and Pioneer 8K.鈥�
The 39-year-old Wodak鈥檚 association with the Prairie Inn Harriers began a decade ago.
鈥淪he was running unaffiliated with no club or university at the sa国际传媒 cross-country championships,鈥� recalled Reid.
鈥淲e had a great team led by Lucy Smith, Cheryl Murphy and Ulla Hansen and so we asked Natasha to be our fourth member and she ran the anchor leg and we won the provincial championship. She joined our team at each sa国际传媒 cross-country championship and we won six consecutive provincial titles.鈥�
Those years were crucial to Wodak鈥檚 development. So much so she is still a member of the Prairie Inn club and runs as a Harrier.
鈥淏ob [Reid] has been a huge supporter of mine,鈥� said Wodak.
鈥淭hey were there when I started. It鈥檚 been a great continuing connection with the Harriers.鈥�
On the track in the 10,000 metres, Wodak was 2018 Gold Coast Commonwealth Games finalist and 2019 Lima Pan Am Games gold medallist. Soon will come decision time. The women鈥檚 10,000 metres and marathon are scheduled for the same day at the Tokyo Olympics.
鈥淚 will cross that bridge when I come to it,鈥� said Wodak.
