LOWELL — Ruben Sança’s life on the run has come full circle.
Since finishing up what was a Hall of Fame running career at UMass Lowell, Sança has competed in the 2012 Summer Olympics in London and marathons that span the globe, from the Netherlands to Thailand.
Now Sança, who has placed among the top-25 men’s finishers at the Boston Marathon twice, is ready to run 26 miles, 385 yards on his home turf.
Sança is running in the 2017 Ashworth Awards Baystate Marathon in Lowell as a full participant for the first time Sunday. The Chelmsford resident has spent the better part of the past five months preparing for the race.
“I’ve been training very hard for this marathon since June,” said Sança. “Anyone who lives close to downtown Lowell or drives in downtown Lowell has probably seen me running there day and night. This marathon is like running at home for me. I would not enter this marathon if I did not think I would be able to win it.”
Sança moved to Boston with his family from Cabo Verde (also known as Cape Verde) in 1999. His running career began in high school at the John D. O’Bryant School of Mathematics and Science, and took him to UMass Lowell, where he earned his undergraduate degree in 2009 and his MBA in 2011.
Sança has been working at UMass Lowell since 2012 and is currently the associate director for student affairs (financial).
While running cross-country and indoor/outdoor track for the River Hawks, Sança was a four-time All-American. He holds UMass Lowell’s record in the 5,000 meters (indoor and outdoor). Sança, an NCAA qualifier in a multitude of events, was a five-time All-New England selection. He represented Cabo Verde (Cape Verde) in the 5,000 meters at the Olympics in London in 2012.
Earlier this month, Sança was inducted into UMass Lowell’s Athletic Hall of Fame.
“I pretty much spent most of my years at Lowell training and developing as an athlete,” said Sança. “I was lucky to be able to have great teammates and great coaches who helped in my development.”
At age 30, Sança, a dual citizen of the U.S. and Cabo Verde, certainly isn’t running on empty as his non-stop attention to detail in the workplace and on the race course has helped him maintain a spot at the head of the pack in all that he does.
“While I was running at UMass Lowell my coaches were able to develop me to the point where I was able to take on a high load of training in volume and intensity,” said Sança, who ran his first marathon in the Netherlands in 2011. “From that I kind of knew that after college I was going to do a lot of road races and eventually get into marathons. I’ve found that I’m better suited as a marathoner than a 5,000-meter runner.”
Working full-time at UMass Lowell and putting in the time needed to run 100 to 120 training miles a week is a labor of love for Sança, who stands 6-foot-2 and weighs 152 pounds. He also runs Lowell Running, LLC, a company that allows him to coach people over the internet on how to run a marathon, and he’s in the process of establishing a non-profit organization in Cabo Verde that will provide training camps, sport workshops and training supplies.
“For me one of my biggest challenges is finding a balance between work, training and my social life,” said Sança. “Running is definitely part of my lifestyle. There are a lot of sacrifices, but it’s definitely something that I love.”
Sança hopes his knowledge of the Baystate Marathon course leads to a strong showing.
“I’m pretty familiar with the course,” said Sança. “I wouldn’t say it’s a completely fast course because there are some rolling hills here and there. It’s a nice course where there are not a lot of turns. If the competition is good, you can work together on fast times.”
Sança plans on running the Boston Marathon again in April, with the long-range goal of running in the marathon for Cabo Verde at the Tokyo Olympic Games in 2020.
“Running is my passion,” said Sança. “It keeps everything going in the right direction for me.”
Follow Carmine Frongillo on Twitter @cwfrongi
