The Boston Marathon Fact Sheet

Updated August 5, 2020 | Infoplease Staff

A guide to the world's most celebrated road race

by Erin Teare Martin, Mike Morrison, and Catherine McNiff

Shoes from the 2013 Boston Marathon Memorial Exhibit The Boston Marathon Virtual Tour: A no-sweat guide to the world's most famous race

What: 122nd Boston Marathon

Where: From Hopkinton, MA, to Copley Square in Boston (26.2 miles)

When: Monday, April 15, 2019, race begins at 10:00 A.M., with earlier starts for the mobility impaired (8:40 A.M.), wheelchair (9:02 A.M.), handcycle (9:25 A.M.), and elite women (9:32 A.M.). There will be four waves releasing the rest of the field, at 10:00 A.M., 10:25 A.M., 10:50 A.M., and 11:15 A.M.

Who: Organizers set the field numbers at 32,500 and the race will be run at capacity.

Marathon Facts

The Boston Marathon, organized by the Boston Athletic Association, is the world's oldest marathon. It takes place on the third Monday in April, also known as Patriot's Day, which is a holiday (in Maine and Massachusetts) that commemorates the famous battles of Lexington and Concord.

Two top finishers (male/female) each get $150,000.

Of the 29,978 runners who entered the race in 2018, 26,948 actually ran, and 25,746 finished. That is 95.5%%.

Supporters can register for the marathon's Athlete Alert. You will receive an alert as your runner reaches the 10K, 13.1-mile, 30K, 35K, 40K, and the finish line! You can also text a special message on race day to support your runner—your message will appear on three big screens along the race course.

Historic Moments

In 1951, future Massachusetts Governor and presidential candidate Mike Dukakis finished 57th (3:31) as a high school student.

In 1967, Kathy Switzer was the first woman to run the marathon with a number. She finished the race despite an infamous incident in which one of the race officials angrily tried to tear off her number and eject her. 

In 1975, Boston became the first major marathon to include a wheelchair division.

In 1988, Ibrahim Hussein became the first black man to win at Boston.

In 2007, the marathon initiated a wave start, with one group of runners going off at 10:00 A.M. and a second group starting a half an hour later.

In 2012, the 500,000th finisher in the 116-year history of the Boston Marathon crossed the finish line.

In 2013, two bombs exploded near the finish line during the marathon. The bombs went off at 2:50 in the afternoon as runners finished the race. Three people were killed. One was an eight-year-old boy. More than 260 people were injured. The first explosion happened on Boylston Street close to the finish line. The second blast came just over ten seconds later, 50 to 100 yards away.

Lelisa Desisa won not only the 2013 Boston Marathon, but also many hearts when he chose to give his medal back to the city of Boston to honor the victims of that year's bombing. In a quieter gesture, he also gifted his racing bib to a couple who were injured in the blast.

In 2016, Women's Open Division winner Atsede Baysa gave her medal to race Grand Marshal Bobbi Gibb, the first woman to ever run the marathon. This was also the year that Jami Marseilles became the first the ever double amputee to complete the race.  

In 2017, the records were broken for both men's and women's wheelchair divisions by Swiss participants. Marcel Hug and Manuela Schar completed the course in 1:18:04 and 1:28:17, respectively. 

In 2018, dark-horse contestant Sarah Sellers made headlines after running a close second place in the women's division. Sellers, a full-time nurse with no sponsorships (and no notable history to place her in the elite wave), finished only five minutes behind the first place winner.