Yes, 10k in Ottawa, not the marathon. I've run them both, BTW.
The Nordion 10k isn't a SLOW course, but it's not what I would choose if I were aiming to run a PB or record of some sort. Not the best time trialing 10k road course.
When I wrote "decent climbs," I didn't mean to imply Pike's Peak or anything, but the course climbs in a few places. Out along Queen Elizabeth (outbound along the canal) there's a short climb, maybe 200m long, rising not a lot, but noticeable at race pace. When you turn off Queen Elizabeth and head up toward Bronson, there's another longer rise, and when you turn onto Bronson you continue to climb a little over the bridge. Total grade change from along the canal to the top of the bridge isn't enormous, but it's something like 30-35 feet, I would guess, over ~ 1 km.
The course then drops back to canal level in the next few hundred metres, but you negotiate a relatively tight on ramp, so you don't get the full benefit of the drop.
Back along Colonel By beside the canal, the course is winding, and you have to run the tangnts very closely to not add distance. You turn off Colonel By with a couple of 90 degree turns over the Pretoria Bridge, and then follow Queen Elizabeth along curvey roads to the finish.
Thr course has at least nine 90 degree turns, lots of winding sections, and a small number of minor rises. It's usually hot (it was warm Saturday but not too bad) and windy (wind wasn't bad Saturday), making for a very low likelihood of ever seeing a WR set.
It's not like the course is a huge handicap. You can run decent times, for a loop 10k road course. But it's not blazing fast, like you'd want for a WR attempt. Maybe Bekele could crack 27:02 on that course on a good day. But not on an off day, and not in most years.