After a disappointing fifth place finish in last year’s Wharf to Wharf race, Arturs Medveds managed to find some sweet redemption on Sunday morning.
The 25-year-old Latvian won the 53rd running of the event in 27 minutes, 04 seconds, edging defending champion Evert Silva (27:16) of Fresno and Los Angeles’ Robert Miranda (27:23) in second and third, respectively.
Anthony Rafitis (27:58) of Mammoth Lakes took fourth, while American Olympian Galen Rupp placed fifth (28:00).
“It was amazing to run with Galen Rupp,” said Medveds, who was returning from a back injury. “This year I was like ‘I need to win.’ I knew there wouldn’t be that many elite athletes like last year. I’m more fit this year, just coming back from injury, but it was special to win it.”
There were several changes made to this past weekend. Most notably was a new route that forced 16,000 participants to start on Portola Drive instead of in front of the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk.
The new course wound up being a total of 5.91 miles, which was slightly shorter than the traditional six-mile course participants are accustomed to running on.
Medveds, who recently graduated from California Baptist University and currently runs for Performance Elite, seemed to have no trouble adjusting to the alternate route.
“I was hoping it will be the same course, I know kind of where I should push,” he said. “But, this year’s course is much easier than last year, or maybe I’m just fit.”
A really neat moment came when the leading pack crossed paths with the rest of the participating runners near the Walton Lighthouse on East Cliff Drive.
“But for the sake of tradition and culture, I think the original course will always be fun,” Silva said.
Silva, 25, maintained his stance with the front pack, keeping up with Rupp, an Olympic silver and bronze medalist, and the rest of the leaders after the new first mile-marker on Portola Drive,
Rupp then began to fall back while Miranda built momentum going into the third mile, taking the lead momentarily.
“I guess you see Galen Rupp in there, and when he doesn’t go to the front, you don’t want to have a silver medalist behind you,” said Silva, who recently graduated from Oklahoma City University. “Everyone’s kind of waiting to see who was gonna go until people got tired, and they just decided to take it for themselves.”
Medveds made his move on the East Cliff Drive and 17th Avenue intersection to keep pace with Miranda as both runners stayed side-by-side up until the fourth mile. That’s when Medveds separated himself and built a small cushion to take the lead for good, and a $1,200 paycheck.
“I guess it’s never comfortable to make a push,” Medveds said. “It’s always kind of guessing. Everyone is the same, distance running is painful. You have to test other athletes with you.”
Meanwhile, Miranda found himself battling with Silva, who in the end wound up taking second and $600 in prize money. Miranda earned $300 for his third place finish.
“It sucks because I won last year, I was hoping to defend my title,” Silva said. “But it could’ve been worse, I could have been third.”
The top local male finisher was 26-year-old Sean Riedel of Santa Cruz, who placed 13th in 29:35.
“It feels awesome,” he said. “I kind of knew it was maybe a possibility. My buddy Jack [Rose] and Raymond [Valadez Ingersoll], and Jay Thomson, a lot of people I thought would be in front of me. But I felt really good today, so it means a lot.”
Other notable local top finishers included Aptos High alumnus Jack Rose (30:03) in 22nd, Santa Cruz’s Jay Thomson (30:23) in 29th, Raymond Valadez Ingersoll (30:51) in 39th and Eric Anderson (31:15) in 46th.
Riedel, who moved to Santa Cruz in 2017, used to run cross country and track at UC Santa Cruz. He got a chance to see his former coach David Klech at the finish line, making the victory just a tad bit more pleasant.
“I know so many people who lived here in the past, and they come out and they’ll stay with me for Wharf to Wharf,” Riedel said. “It’s just a whole weekend holiday. It means so much for a town that I love so much. To be able to win a race here means so much to me and the town.”
On the women’s side, 38-year-old Ethiopian Atsede Tesema won in 31:02, finishing well ahead of Davis’ Gillian Meeks (32:09) and Santa Rosa’s Hanne Thomsen (32:09), who battled for second and third, respectively.
Lindsey Adams (33:45) of Cool, Calif. took fourth, while Yuzki Oey (33:56) of Redwood City placed fifth.
“For me, it was very nice,” Tesema said. “I feel great, the weather was good and the course this year changed but it’s not bad. I’m actually a marathon runner for 10k, so this was a good speed for me.”
San Lorenzo Valley alumna Azalea Groleau was this year’s top local female finisher as she placed seventh in 34:08. The 22-year-old Felton native said she was so tuned into the race that she didn’t even realize the top honors belonged to her.
“It’s just exciting to be able to represent the running community in Santa Cruz,” Groleau said. “It’s been a big part of growing up for me, and I’ve met some really amazing people along the way. So, just being able to represent that is something that’s special, and that I’m excited to be a part of.”
Right behind Groleau in eighth place was one of her best friends Isabel Sanchez (34:33) of Santa Cruz High, who finished ahead of Groleau in 2024.
“I think we really just enjoy running together, and we’ve been back and forth for years,” said Groleau, who’s a member of the Seattle University track team. “Last year, she beat me, so we really just make each other better, and I don’t feel it’s super competitive between us.”
Aptos High incoming senior and cross country runner Maya Schiro placed 20th in 35:44, while her former teammate Brooke Willoughby (35:57) took 21st. Watsonville’s Daniela Salazar, the defending top female finisher, placed 23rd in 36:08.
Mirna Martinez of Watsonville was the golden bib drawing winner, taking home a cash prize award of $1,000.
The four-year participant of the Wharf to Wharf stood with the rest of the crowd that anxiously waited as numbers were being called out. One-by-one, participants sighed in disappointment until it ultimately came down to Martinez’s bib No. 9816.
“I literally opened my envelope this morning,” she said. “I was like, okay, I’ll see if I’m gonna be the winner.”
Winner, winner, fancy dinner.
