With 755 marathons in the US alone this year, the Boston Marathon remains one of the most iconic and oldest running marathons dating all the way back to 1897. Starting in Hopkinton and ending just down the block from SnapSuites, this marathon is one of the quintessential spring events in Boston. With so much rich history and the 122th marathon coming up just around the corner, we thought we would share some of the most interesting facts regarding this exciting event.
- The Boston Marathon is one of the only marathons held on a weekday since it coincides with Patriots’ Day.
- Approximately 500,000 spectators line the marathon’s course cheering on the runners. That’s nearly 80 percent of Boston’s total population!
- When the first race was run, it was just 24.8 miles and there was only 18 runners. Just 10 people actually finished the race. In 1924, the race was lengthened to 26.2 and today there are more than 30,000 people expected to run the marathon this year.
- Women weren’t allowed to race until 1972, 75 years after the first marathon was ran. Famously, Kathrine Switzer entered the race under the name “KV Switzer” in 1967 where she had to dodge a race official who tried to rip off her bib until she crossed the finish line 4 hours and 20 minutes later. Last year she ran the race again and finished with the same bib number she wore fifty years prior, #261.
- The starting line changes each year and is a one of a kind artwork which Jack Leduc spends up to 30 hours stenciling onto the pavement- only for it to be trampled on my thousands of feet. Comparatively, a decal is used for the finish line.
- Race director Dave McGillivray runs the race each year in memory of his grandfather who ran it for 39 straight years. However, he doesn’t start the race until after the final finishers have crossed the finish line.
- While you may have to be 18 years old to enter the race, there is no age limit. In 2015, 82 year old Katherine Beiers, completed her eleventh Boston Marathon.
- Every Sunday before the race, Boston’s City Hall Plaza opens their doors to hungry racers to chow down on thousands of pounds of pasta.
- Kenmore Square’s historic 73-year-old Citgo sign lights the way for tired runners at the end of the course. When racers see the iconic red triangle, they know there is just one more mile until the finish line.
- In 2013, the marathon was disrupted by two consecutive explosions near the finish line that killed three people. That year, just over 23,000 people entered the race. The year after we saw a swift increase in runners with over 36,000 people entering to run.