iRun.ca

More than a million Canadians are runners, making it this country’s most popular recreational and fitness activity. Canadians run for exercise and we run to raise money for important causes. We run alone and in groups. And every year, hundreds of thousands of us participate in organized races, from fun runs to marathons, which are growing steadily.

Until now, Canadian runners haven’t had our own running magazine. But now, there’s iRun, providing a uniquely Canadian perspective on the activity and the sport. Published six times a year, iRun educates, informs and inspires Canadian runners. And, behind our parent company Sportstats, the largest race timing company in the world, iRun has become the ultimate running celebration, in mobile, print, social media and at irun.ca.

Marc Roy, CEO, Sportstats

iRun because there’s only 24-hours in a day.

A triathlete and 2x Ironman finisher, Roy purchased Sportstats with his wife Isabelle Fradette in 1995, and transformed the Ottawa-based company into the largest race-timing institution in the world. A father of three, and diehard Senators fan, Roy has recently expanded his company abroad, with new offices opened in San Diego, Utah, Thailand, and Singapore. He recently oversaw a major re-launch of the Sportstats website at sportstats.ca, which holds data of more than six million athletes. He vows to run another Ironman soon.

Mark Sutcliffe, Group Publisher

iRun for a better life

Few people in Canada have written, broadcast, or talked more about running and the runner’s experience than Mark Sutcliffe. It started when he turned his passion for running into a weekly column in the Ottawa Citizen, then he launched iRun and the weekly iRun radio show and podcast. He has since written three books about running: Why I Run, Canada’s Magnificent Marathon and Long Road to Boston. Mark has completed 25 marathons and raised more than $200,000 for charity through his running. In addition to iRun, Mark has also launched several other publications, including the Ottawa Business Journal and the Kitchissippi Times. Mark hosts a daily talk show on 1310 NEWS in Ottawa and also appears regularly on Rogers TV and CPAC.
More on Mark via whyirun.ca

Ray Zahab, Runner-in-Chief

iRun because i can’t stop!!! I love it too much

A former pack-a-day smoker, Ray transformed his life and became an ultra-distance runner, winning some of the world’s most challenging foot races. Beginning in November 2006, Ray and two other runners ran 7500km across the Sahara Desert in 111 days, averaging 70 kilometres per day without a single day’s rest.  Since then, Ray has completed numerous running expeditions all over the world, including unsupported 650km run across Siberia’s Lake Baikal in winter, a 1200km run the length of the Atacama Desert and a crossing of Death Valley off-road. In 2008, he founded impossible2Possible (i2P), an organization that aims to inspire and educate youth through adventure learning, and inclusion and participation in expeditions. At no cost to schools or participating youth, i2P has taken Youth Ambassadors on expeditions to Amazon, Sahara, Bolivia and more.

In addition to his running adventures, Ray co-hosts iRun: The Running Show on The TSN 1200 radio.  He also speaks around the world at events such as TED, IOC World Conference, Idea City, The Economist World in 2010 and 2011, World Affairs Council and countless other events- spreading the message that we are all capable of the extraordinary in our lives and that in fact, the impossible is possible.
Find out more about Ray’s Impossible to Possible http://impossible2possible.com

Ben Kaplan, General Manager

iRun because I like being free

Author of Feet, Don’t Fail Me Now, and former running columnist for the National Post, Kaplan joined iRun in December, 2014, and has since collected twelve new pairs of running shoes. A former editor at GQ and New York magazines, Kaplan also taught a year-long running clinic at Toronto’s Black Toe Running and took a group of people from the couch to the marathon. A frequent guest on radio and TV, Kaplan has appeared on Global’s Morning Show, Steven and Chris on CBC, and Metro Morning with Matt Galloway.

Anna Lee Boschetto, Managing Editor

iRun because it challenges and changes me.

A heath and wellness writer, Boschetto has been a part of the iRun team since 2013. Previously an editor with Oxygen and Clean Eating magazines, she has also contributed to Parents Canada, Elevate and Canadian Living. Boschetto has also facilitated community running groups for York Region residents.