Dayna Pidhoresky was the women's winner at the Sept. 13 Windsor Waterfront Half-Marathon (PROVIDED BY D. PIDHORESKY/University of Windsor)
By Kate Hargreaves
On a muggy September morning, Dayna Pidhoresky (BSc ’09, BA ’10) lined up with more than 1,500 runners on Windsor’s Riverside Drive, awaiting the start of the second annual Windsor Waterfront Half-Marathon.
Just over 71 minutes later, she broke the tape at the finish line, at the same time taking down a personal best (PB) that had stood for 15 years.
“It did feel very humid warming up, and we were unsure if a PB would be possible on a day like that,” Pidhoresky recalls.
“From the gun, I just aimed to find the right rhythm, something that felt a bit harder than marathon pace but still sustainable. To be honest, I wasn’t sure if the wheels would fall off too early given the temps.”
The wheels stayed on. Pidhoresky ran a PB, won the women’s race and placed second overall, just 18 seconds behind the men’s winner.
Pidhoresky, who represented Canada in the marathon at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, is no stranger to winning races and holds the Canadian women’s record at the Vancouver Marathon.
It was during her time competing as a Lancer in track and cross country that it became clear she excelled at longer distances. After graduation, she transitioned to road racing, where early success eventually led her to the marathon.
“I had always raced a bit on the roads throughout high school and university and embraced that realm even more when I graduated,” she says.
“It was an easy and successful transition, and I never looked back! Early success at the half-marathon distance allowed me to think that the marathon was the next logical target.”
Pidhoresky credits her time running at UWindsor under the coaching of Dennis Fairall and Gary Malloy with setting her up for continued success and motivation in her running career.
“I wasn't burned out, I still loved running and I feel so fortunate that the University of Windsor was a part of my running journey,” she says.
Despite those successes, her path has not always been linear. Injuries and the COVID-19 pandemic complicated her Olympic prospects.
After being seated next to a passenger who tested positive for COVID-19 en route to Tokyo, Pidhoresky was forced to quarantine, and her Olympic marathon debut did not go to plan. But Pidhoresky says the experience motivated her to keep moving forward.
"On one hand I think if I had had a dream Olympics in 2020, I may not have the same fire burning in me at this moment,” she says.
“I really long for that redemption race and another ‘more normal’ Olympic experience.”
Pidhoresky says the experience taught her to be a smarter athlete.
"The runner who was training for 2020 might have had too much dip on her chip, and I now strive for consistency because I know that will get me the best results,” Pidhoresky says.
“I wish that was a lesson I had taken to heart earlier, but better late than never. I hope I am a smarter, more mature athlete because of the challenges I have faced over the years.”
Toeing the line at the Windsor Waterfront Half was both a homecoming and a tune-up for Pidhoresky as she moves into the fall marathon season.
"We always love coming home to race,” she says.
“The Windsor run community is unparalleled. Seeing familiar faces as well as visiting family put some extra pep in my step, and when I'm happy, I usually race well, so the hometown advantage is real! I felt the love out there on Sunday and all the cheers were much appreciated.”
That motivation kept her cruising down Riverside Drive, so much so that she says she didn’t really feel the fatigue until the last couple of kilometres of the race. By then, she was on track to win decisively and beat her 15-year-old PB.
“Sunday gave me a lot of confidence in my fitness—to be able to run that time in those conditions and for it to feel really controlled was the best outcome I could have asked for,” she says.
The Windsor Waterfront Half sets Pidhoresky up for her fall marathon in Toronto, where she is hoping to beat another PB, this one from 2019.
“I think first and foremost with it being the Canadian Marathon Championships, I would like to aim for the win,” she says.
“That will still be a tough ask because there are a lot of fast women lining up, but it will be a good challenge that I think I can try to tackle. First things first though, get to the race healthy and happy, execute a smart race, and then hopefully that sets me up well to try to break the tape first.”
Looking back at her time as a Lancer, Pidhoresky says she is grateful to have been part of the golden years of track and cross-country running at UWindsor, alongside fellow local Olympians Melissa Bishop and Noelle Montcalm.
“I never grew up thinking I could make the Olympics, but being around such a successful program and fellow athletes certainly played a role in how I structured my goals and chased success in the sport,” she says. “Go Lancers!”