Boston Marathon

The Boston Marathon is the city’s most-watched sporting event, with an average of half a million viewers, and 20,000 participants. It’s a prestigious and historical race to be a part of. Traditionally held on Patriot’s Day, “Marathon Monday” is a Boston springtime event you don’t want to miss.

Origins of the Boston Marathon

The Boston Marathon is traditionally held on Patriot’s Day, the third Monday in April, also known as “Marathon Monday.” Its roots date back to 1897, when the marathon was first held with a mere 18 participants. Inspired by the 1896 Summer Olympics, the Boston Marathon is considered the world’s oldest annual marathon and is internationally recognized as one of five World Marathon Majors.

These days, the Boston Marathon is managed by the Boston Athletic Association (BAA). It has grown from a paltry 18 participants, to about 20,000, with another 500,000 viewers in attendance, making it the city’s most-watched sporting event. In 1996, the 100^th anniversary of the Boston Marathon, a record 38,708 marathoners registered.

Marathon Course

The Boston Marathon is 26.22 miles long, and runs through several cities and towns: Hopkinton, Ashland, Framingham, Natick, Wellesley, Newton, Brookline, and, of course, Boston. Starting on Main Street in Hopkinton and ending in Copley Square, next to the Boston Public Library, the course follows Route 135, Route 16, and Commonwealth Avenue/Route 30.

The most challenging section of the course is the Newton Hills area, which includes Heartbreak Hill near Boston College and the three hills on Commonwealth Avenue. Heartbreak Hill derives its name for the 1936 Boston Marathon, when John A. Kelley (1935 winner) passed Ellison “Tarzan” Brown, and patted him on the shoulder. The gesture spurred Brown to push forward and win the race, “breaking Kelley’s heart” according to the Boston Globe.

Past Participant Discrimination

The Boston Marathon was not always open to everyone. Gender, race, ethnicity were previously all restrictions for participation in the Boston Marathon. For example, during the Korean War in 1951, BAA President Walter A. Brown denied Korean participants from entering the marathon. He was quoted as saying Koreans should be training to fight to protect America, rather than training for the marathon.

Until 1972, women were not allowed to participate either. The first woman to complete the Boston Marathon was Roberta “Bobbi” Gibb in 1966, and finished the race in 3 hours, 21 minutes and 40 seconds. The next year, Gibb had some competition, Kathrine Switzer who was the first female to run with an official race number. It wasn’t until 1972 that an official women’s division was added to the Boston Marathon.

Marathon Qualification Standards

While the Boston Marathon is “open to the public,” there are several prerequisites that must be met in order to enter. Participants must be 18 years or older. They must have completed a marathon course and be certified by an affiliation of the International Association of Athletics Federation approximately 18 months before running the Boston Marathon.

Additionally, runners must have a run time below a set standard, determined by age and gender. For example, male participants between 18 and 34 must have a run time 3 hours and 5 minutes or less, or three hours and 35 minutes for females in the same age group. However, this standard doesn’t include marathon partners, such as charities, sponsors, officials, and other groups. Registration fills up quickly and space is limited – the BAA has tightened its standards accordingly to limit the pool to faster, more experienced runners.

However, athletes with disabilities are welcome to participate. Since 1975, the Boston Marathon has an official push rim wheelchair division, and added a visually impaired/blind division, and a mobility impaired division in the mid 1980s, each with its own set of qualifying standards as determined by the BAA. The push rim wheelchair division winner is the recipient of the highest award since cash prizes were implemented in 1986.

Boston Marathon Winners

Winners of the Boston Marathon were originally crowned with a wreath made of olive branches. However, in the 1980s, professional racers demanded monetary awards for the winners. In 1986, corporate sponsors made cash prizes available to marathon winners.

The record for fastest marathon in the men’s division is held by Geoffrey Mutai, from Kenya. Mutai ran a race time of 2 hours, 3 minutes and 2 seconds on April 18, 2011. With a race time of 2 hours, 20 minutes and 43 seconds in 2002 is fellow Kenyan Margaret Okaya, holding the women’s record.

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