Michael Voss hopes to reclaim the men’s title at the 2024 Rotorua Marathon
Published 22 January 2024
Rotorua Marathon home favourite Michael Voss is hoping to reclaim the men’s title when he takes to the start line at the historic 60th anniversary edition of the iconic race in May.
A member of the local Lake City AC, Michael secured an unprecedented hat-trick of Rotorua Marathon victories from 2020 to 2022 before conceding his crown by placing second in last year’s event behind Tokyo Olympian Malcolm Hicks – who ran the quickest winning time in 22 years.
27-year-old Michael Voss, who earlier this month hacked nearly a minute from his personal best to land the New Zealand 10,000m title on the track is in a rich vein of form and he has a clear goal when he returns for a seventh successive crack at his home marathon on Saturday 4 May.
Michael Voss at the 2023 Rotorua Marathon. Image credit: Alisha Lovrich
“It would rude not to come back to Rotorua for the 60th anniversary event, and it would be cool to get my title back,” adds Michael. “I finished second last year behind Malcolm, but I feel I am more than capable of going much quicker this year and hopefully I can land my fourth victory.”
Michael enjoyed an outstanding 2023 season winning the national half marathon title, claiming a bronze medal at the New Zealand Cross Country Championships and also appearing for New Zealand over the half marathon distance at the 2023 World Road Running Championships in Latvia.
His success in Dunedin when taking out the national 10,000m title earlier this month in a huge PB of 29:29.37 offers further evidence of his current form, which he believes is due to a number of factors.
“I’ve had a good run with no injuries for a couple of years now and that consistency has allowed me to improve as an athlete,” he says. “I’ve also made a big effort to get the right sleep, eat properly and I’ve also introduced a lot more stretching and strength-based exercises into my programme.”
Before taking on the ‘lap of the lake’, the three-time Rotorua Marathon champion will target more track outings. Over the past couple of months he has posted track PB’s in the 3000m, 5000m and 10,000m all of which points towards a revision of his current marathon PB of 2:22:34 set at the 2019 Auckland Marathon.
Combining working as a full-time builder with running around 100 miles per week, Michael is fully focused on his goals for the 60th anniversary event and is encouraging others to enter the special celebratory edition of New Zealand’s most historic marathon.
“There are plenty of options for people of all standards to run or walk a range of events,” he says. “Being a local the Rotorua Marathon has long held a special place in my heart and to experience the unique atmosphere of the great race is not one to be missed.”
Michael Voss at the 2023 Rotorua Marathon. Image credit: Alisha Lovrich