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Corey Bellemore, Lionel Sanders’ former training partner, wins Beer Mile World Classic

Canadian misses world record by just two seconds

Photo by: Ekaterina Moysov
July 4, 2023
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Triathlon fans will recognize the name – Corey Bellemore, who, like Lionel Sanders hails from Tecumseh, Ontario, seemed on the verge of moving into the triathlon ranks a few years ago while doing a lot of training with the Canadian triathlon star. Bellemore, an elite runner, holds the world record for the beer mile, having run 4:28 for the four-lap effort that requires competitors to drink a 355 ml beer (5% minimum ABV) before every 400 m lap of the race.

As much as we would love to see Bellemore (left, training with Sanders in Kona) take up triathlon – he has a swimming background and rides his bike as a form of cross training – he’s still a force to be reckoned with on the track. He’s a 3:39 1,500 m runner (he ran 3:41 last month at at meet in Nashville) and has run a mile, without drinking any beers, in 3:57.

Corey Bellemore: A triathlete in the making?

Bellemore missed his world record by just a couple of seconds last Saturday at the 2023 Beer Mile World Classic in Chicago, despite having lost a shoe at the start of the race.

Close to record

Bellemore was the pre-race favourite to win the championship, holding the beer-mile world record of 4:28. This year, Bellemore had to battle a little adversity, losing one of his spikes at the start. Bellemore is a man of experience when it comes to the beer mile, and he knew time is of the essence, running the remainder of the race with one shoe.

He was on beer-mile world record pace early, coming through the first lap in 60 seconds (beer + lap) and through 800m (two beers and two laps) in 2:06. Despite one shoe, Bellemore just missed his world record by two seconds, finishing in 4:30, beating second place by 22 seconds.

Lionel Sanders and beer mile world record holder Corey Bellemore race Tecumseh Triathlon