The history of the Lake Runs includes both colorful participants and a grueling race held in record-breaking heat, recalls Urmo Raiend, the head of Stamina, which has organized the Lake Runs for 25 years. According to Raiend, the Lake Runs have always motivated running enthusiasts to train consistently throughout the summer, and this anniversary year could attract a record number of participants. Maru is the series’ main sponsor for the sixth consecutive year.
Who talked you into becoming the main organizer of the Järvejooks races 25 years ago?
No one said it would be easy. Starting in 1995, I organized a race around Lake Ülemiste, and starting in 2001, the Pühajärve Race. 2002. That year, we also managed to get the organizers of the Viljandi Lake Run on board, and that’s how the Lake Runs series was born; in its first year, there were three races—runs around Lake Viljandi, Lake Pühajärv, and Lake Ülemiste.
You’ve been running this event for a quarter of a century now! How have you managed to organize the same event for 25 years?
One might just as well ask how someone has been doing the same job for 25 years or more. We’re motivated by the positive feedback from participants and the chance to work outdoors, surrounded by nature. As long as we have participants and supporters, we’ll keep going!
What is your first memory of running?
I remember the 30th race around Lake Ülemiste, which concluded the first Järvejooksud series; Pavel Loskutov was the clear winner, though it took some effort to get him to the starting line. Loskutov, who had won silver at the European Marathon Championships in Munich just two weeks earlier, finished more than a minute ahead of the second- and third-place finishers, but he finished more than a minute ahead of Vyacheslav Koshelev and Toomas Tarm, who placed first and second in the series standings (pictured below: the awards ceremony for that same race).
How has the running series changed over that time?
The running series has essentially remained the same, although the races included in the series have changed over time. The Lake Runs series was launched in 2002, when the Great Run around Lake Viljandi and the runs around Lakes Pühajärv and Ülemiste were combined into a single series. The idea was to encourage running enthusiasts to train purposefully for nearly half a year and to inspire newcomers to set more ambitious goals. Consistency is one of the key prerequisites for any meaningful activity, and this is guaranteed in the Lake Runs series.
2003. In [year], the Harku Lake Run joined the series, and the series expanded to four stages. 2013. In [year], Suurjooks decided to withdraw from the Lake Viljandi Run series, so we began looking for a fourth race again. The Saadjärve Loop made the cut, and at the end of July 2014, the first summer run around Saadjärve was held. It turned out to be a real hell of a run, with finishers dropping like flies and needing to cool off. To this day, the temperature of 35.4 degrees recorded on race day, July 27, 2014, remains the heat record for Äksi, the location of the start and finish at that time.
The Summer Run around Lake Saadjärv was held six times, most recently in 2019. The Paunküla Reservoir Run was added to the series, which had in the meantime returned to a three-stage format with the Lake Harku, Lake Pühajärve, and Lake Ülemiste runs—which took place in three stages—in 2022, and since then, the Lake Runs series has once again consisted of four stages.
What has been the biggest challenge?
One major challenge, of course, is finding sponsors, including the series’ title sponsor. Since 2021, the series’ title sponsor has been the Estonian construction group Maru, to whom we owe our heartfelt thanks!
Various companies have served as the series’ main sponsors over the years. Among them are Mayeri, the largest consumer chemicals plant in the Baltic States; EMT, the mobile operator and predecessor of today’s Telia; DFDS, Europe’s leading ferry operator; and the media portal Delfi, all of which have held the prestigious title of main sponsor.
Obtaining a permit to organize a public event can also be a challenge at times. Once you have that permit and the local government has publicly approved all organizational details, everything else is in your hands and those of your team. Of course, parking is always a headache, since competition centers located by lakes aren’t designed to accommodate large numbers of cars.
You hear from others what their most vivid memory of the lake run is. What is yours?
The participants’ records are memorable. 2010. In that year, a record number of participants took part in the Harku and Ülemiste Lake Runs, with 1,120 and 1,017 runners, respectively, crossing the finish line. 2011. That year also saw two records set: 996 runners finished the Pühajärve Run, and 423 runners completed the entire series.
The races, especially the Pühajärve Race, have attracted a diverse group of participants. Athletes from various sports often compete there. Estonia’s best cross-country skiers and biathletes are already regulars at Pühajärve. Indrek Tobreluts and Raido Ränkel have even finished in the top three.
2004. That year, Martin Müürsepp also stopped by Pühajärve after wrapping up a successful season with Unics Kazan, which culminated in a victory in the FIBA EuroCup. During his summer vacation, Martin enjoyed the beautiful lake views while running with his friend Tair Tenno and the Šmigun sisters, Katrin and Kristina.
Among the many basketball players who have participated, Valmo Kriisa has posted the fastest time.
Kersti Kaljulaid, the current president of the Estonian Olympic Committee (EOK), participated in the Ülemiste Lake Run in 2007 and 2010. After a long hiatus, she returned to the Ülemiste Lake course in 2020, this time as President of the Republic of Estonia.
What is the most memorable feedback you’ve heard from participants?
There’s a phrase that’s often repeated and sums it all up: “The Lake Runs at their usual high standard!”
The four races in the Maru Lake Runs series all offer different experiences and vary in length. The series’ stages, spread out over four months — we kick off in mid-April, and the final race takes place in late August — provide runners with great motivation to train during the summer months and use the Maru Lake Runs series to prepare for a fall marathon or half-marathon.
What advice would you give to someone considering joining the lake runs? Who would you like to see more of on the running trail?
To experienced runners, I’d say: come and enjoy Estonia’s beautiful lakes. For beginners and those who want to complete the course faster, I recommend checking out the special training plans on the Järvejooksud website, created by Sparta running coach Toomas Tarm, who has been involved with Järvejooksud since its very first race.
How are you celebrating the series’ 25th anniversary?
I haven’t really thought about it yet. But I hope that before the final stage of the series’ anniversary season—the 54th Tallinna Vee Run around Lake Ülemiste—takes place, some good ideas will come to mind that can be carried out in a fitting manner.
What is your biggest dream regarding lake running that could come true?
My big dream is that each year will have over 1,000 graduates and that the series will one day celebrate its 50th anniversary.
Basketball player Martin Müürsepp and cross-country skiers Katrin and Kristina Šmigun at the 2004 lake run.
