Hofbauer

When Trevor Hofbauer arrived in Toronto for the 2019 Canadian Marathon Championships (Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon), he was seriously contemplating giving up his running dreams, as he watched hard-earned dollars vanish from his bank account. He had lost his sponsor and was self-funding his athletics career.

Perceived as the underdog, Hofbauer flew under the radar in the lead-up to the race. He was even left off the athlete panel for the pre-race media conference, despite being the first Canadian to cross the finish line in 2017. Hofbauer was also facing a stacked field that included three of Canada’s four fastest marathoners of all-time (all former Olympians), including national record holder Cameron Levins (2:09:25), Reid Coolsaet (2:10.28) and Dylan Wykes (2:10.47).

When the gun went off, Hofbauer quickly found Levins, along with some international athletes targeting the Olympic standard who were being led by pacers. As the race progressed, commentators and fans alike noticed Hofbauer looked quite comfortable and was going after something special. At the mid-way point, he was matching Levins stride for stride, he was having fun and he was making the marathon look effortless. At the 30-kilometre split, now ahead of Levins, Hofbauer was confident that it was his day. It was his time to return to the top of the podium.

Coming down the final stretch, Hofbauer knew he was the top Canadian and that his time was quick. But how quick? When we saw the official time coming into the finishing chute, he was just outside of Levins’ Canadian record, but he was clear of 2:10. Hofbauer crossed the finish line in 2:09:51 – the second fastest time in Canadian history – shaving nearly seven minutes off his personal best. What’s more impressive, he did it without wearing a watch for pacing purposes, choosing instead to run on feel.

Hofbauer was instantly catapulted into the national limelight once again – and not for being that goofy kid from Calgary who celebrated pre-maturely with fans lining the streets of Toronto in 2017 when he won his first marathon title. He had bested the Canadian record-holder in a head-to-head match-up and earned his place on Canada’s Olympic team.

Hofbauer has been a mainstay on the Canadian road and cross country scene since 2013, when he ran his first half marathon for fun. He enjoyed it and began training while working full-time. In 2016, he took a leap of faith, uprooted his life in Calgary, and moved across the country to train in Guelph with the best distance runners in Canada.

That proved to be a good decision. He was named to his first National Team (2017 World Cross Country Championships / 2017 NACAC Cross Country Championships) and won the 2017 Canadian Marathon Championships in a time of 2:18:06, good enough for ninth overall among the international field in Toronto.

Not long after, Hofbauer returned to Calgary to focus on the half marathon. Training by himself, he managed to pull-off his first win at the 2018 Canadian Half Marathon Championships in a time of 1:08:26.

So how did Hofbauer get into running? It wasn’t his passion. He played competitive basketball in high school and joined the track and field team purely for the cross-training benefits. Following graduation, he headed to Southern Alberta Institute of Technology, and joined the cross country team to stay active, before lacing up for his first National Championship in 2012.

In eight short years, Hofbauer went from recreational athlete to Olympian. He hasn’t been on the start line since that cool October day in 2019, but on Aug. 8 in Sapporo, Hofbauer is prepared to battle the best in the world in the 42.195-kilometre race.