Santa 5K Run had two winners

Fenway Breckels (left) was given the gold medal for winning the Santa 5K Run in NOTL Dec. 19, running it in the fastest time. Jessey (centre) had the fastest mat time, said organizer Kelly Arnott. The Santa 5K Run held last weekend, Dec.

The Santa 5K Run held last weekend, Dec. 19, resulted in some confusion over who won the race.

At the finish line, 27-year-old Waterdown native Jessey The Elf (yes, that is his legal name, and he has the pointy ears to prove it) was declared the winner, but when awards were presented, organizer Kelly Arnott ecided she had made an error, and gave the gold medal to teenager Fenway Breckels (left) during the ceremony at The Irish Harp.

Breckels, a 15-year-old Governor Simcoe student, ran the fastest race according to the chip time, by six-tenths of a second, but because he left the start a little later, the clock showed Jessey the winner. Typically, says Arnott, the win goes to the fastest clock or mat time in a road race, and they both ran a great race, but Breckels deserved the win. She hopes the Irish Harp will be involved again next year — everyone loved the NOTL location — and she expects she could have 2,000 runners in 2022 instead of the 200 who participated this year.