Caroline Pomerleau put her hand over her mouth and was wide-eyed being told what she accomplished in her marathon debut.

The Quebec City native claimed the women鈥檚 Canadian marathon title, while Thomas Broatch, also making his marathon debut, captured the national men鈥檚 crown at the TCS Toronto Waterfront Marathon on Sunday.

After crossing the finish line, Pomerleau didn鈥檛 realize she had won the title until she was informed by an official while being handed a Canadian flag to pose for photos with.

鈥淚 cannot believe what happened,鈥� she said with the flag draped over her shoulders. 鈥淚 never ran a marathon, only half-marathons, so I (thought) the distance was going to be a big challenge for me, so I鈥檓 just going to take it easy.鈥�

Pomerleau crossed the finish line in two hours 34 minutes 44 seconds to finish 10th overall on a windy fall morning. Ethiopia鈥檚 Buze Diriba was the overall winner at 2:23:11.

Pomerleau鈥檚 goal was to run between 2:35 and 2:40 and was more focused on her time than where she finished.

鈥淭he plan was to check how I feel about the first five (kilometres). If it was too difficult, slow down,鈥� she said. 鈥淚f it was easy, keep the pace 鈥� it was easy, I stuck to that and I did it until the end.鈥�

Anne-Marie Comeau (2:34:51) of Saint-Ferr茅ol-les-Neiges, Que., was the second Canadian, placing 11th overall. Comeau ran her first marathon in 2019 and hadn鈥檛 run one since, setting a personal best on Sunday.

鈥淚t鈥檚 better for me, not skiing, because I can full-time train as a runner,鈥� said Comeau, who competed for Canada in cross-country skiing at the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea. 鈥淚 knew if I was doing under 2:35, I would be happy.鈥�

Dayna Pidhoresky (2:35:50) of Tecumseh, Ont., who competed in the marathon at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021, finished 12th overall as the third Canadian.

The 36-year-old Pidhoresky said she dealt with muscle spasms in her legs during the race but didn鈥檛 want to drop out.

Having also dealt with a shin issue a month out from Sunday鈥檚 event and having to adjust her training to being on the bike for the most part, she knew she had to reassess her goal of hitting the Olympic qualifying standard of 2:26:50.

鈥淛ust tried to stay engaged and tried to get to the finish line, it鈥檚 the Canadian championship, I can鈥檛 just drop out,鈥� she said.

鈥淚t鈥檚 been a huge mental battle just to get to the start line,鈥� she added. 鈥淚 gained so much confidence from doing a lot of running and workouts and I felt like I didn鈥檛 have that but I was still trying to give myself the opportunity to just see.鈥�

But Pidhoresky 鈥� the Canadian champion in 2019 and winner of the Vancouver Marathon in May 鈥� acknowledged that although it won鈥檛 be easy to hit the qualifying standard for next year鈥檚 Paris Olympics, she feels she came out tougher from Sunday鈥檚 race.

The deadline for marathon Olympic qualification is April 30, two months earlier than the majority of athletics events.

Vancouver鈥檚 Broatch claimed the men鈥檚 national title at 2:16:25, finishing sixth overall. Kenya鈥檚 Elvis Cheboi was the overall winner at 2:09:20.

鈥淚鈥檓 really stoked to be a national champion, that was my goal going into this race,鈥� Broatch said. 鈥淪uper happy to achieve that, and also I鈥檝e run a pretty good time.鈥�

Broatch said his legs felt 鈥渇ried鈥� with about seven or eight kilometres left in the race but pushed through thanks to a number of factors.

鈥淭he crowd was incredible, I was told there鈥檇 be a lot of good energy and I think that definitely helped me push,鈥� he said. 鈥淎lso just thinking about all that training and all the work I鈥檝e put in going into this.

鈥淢y parents were watching too from Victoria, wanted them to see a good race.鈥�

Benjamin Raymond (2:20:15) of Laval, Que., finished as the second Canadian and eighth overall, while Sergio Villanueva (2:20:48) of Mississauga, Ont., placed ninth overall as the third Canadian.

About 23,800 runners participated in the 5K, half-marathon and marathon. The 42.195-kilometre marathon course first stretched west and then east along the lakeshore, with the start and finish line being in front of Toronto City Hall.