Ottawa’s Mathieu Chatelain insists he isn’t a runner–but this fall, he’ll be attempting to run 100 km in less than 12 hours while raising $100,000 for The Ottawa Hospital Foundation. In two weeks, on May 24, he will line up at the Tamarack Homes Ottawa International Marathon for his longest training run to date as he builds toward his 100K challenge.
The Rockland, Ont., resident says the campaign idea came after a difficult period where he saw people in his community become seriously ill. “I just grabbed my shoes and ran 17 km,” Chatelain told Canadian Running. “I bawled the whole time, thinking, ‘I have to do my part.’”
Through the fundraiser, Chatelain hopes to support not just The Ottawa Hospital, but the broader healthcare system and families navigating medical crises. “How can we, as a society, help another parent get back to their family?”
Mathieu Chatelain and his father. Photo: Courtesy of Mathieu Chatelain
A small-world Ottawa Hospital connection
Chatelain, 40, has long been connected to The Ottawa Hospital and Ottawa Marathon community–volunteering on race weekend, completing the half-marathon and supporting fundraising initiatives like Dancing with the Docs.
During a fundraising breakfast, while listening to a patient share their brain tumour story, Chatelain became emotional, recalling the surgery his own father had when Chatelain was a child. As it turned out, the man seated beside Chatelain was Dr. David Schramm, the surgeon who had operated on his father 30 years earlier. “He even remembered the story,” Chatelain said. “That really hit me.”
Preparing for the 100K challenge
Chatelain is targeting a late-September attempt, when it isn’t too hot. His longest training run to date has been about 35 km, and he’s gradually increasing volume while managing chronic knee pain. The 42.2K, he says, comes at just the right time in his training.
The Ottawa native has also incorporated meditation and long cold plunges into his routine to build mental toughness. “It’s all mental,” Chatelain said. “I’m going to keep pushing and keep learning through experience.”
“Because of this challenge, I am a better person in so many ways,” he said. “The journey has been unbelievable.”
Photo: Mathieu Chatelain
The Campaign to Create Tomorrow
The Ottawa Hospital Foundation’s $500 million Campaign to Create Tomorrow is the largest fundraising initiative in the city’s history, supporting a transformative healthcare project and advancing world-class research. It will also help establish one of the most innovative and expansive regional cancer centres. The campaign has raised $396 million to date.
You can donate to Chatelain’s cause here.
Canadian cancer survivor runs for the system that saved his life