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2019 Boston Marathon

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2019 Boston Marathon
Worknesh Degefa and Lawrence Cherono
VenueBoston, Massachusetts, United States
DateApril 15, 2019
Champions
MenLawrence Cherono (2:07:57)
WomenWorknesh Degefa (2:23:31)
Wheelchair menDaniel Romanchuk (1:21:36)
Wheelchair womenManuela Schär (1:34:19)
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The 2019 Boston Marathon was the 123rd running of the annual marathon race held in Boston, Massachusetts. It took place on April 15, 2019. The elite men's race came down to a sprint finish, which Lawrence Cherono won in 2:07:57. The elite women's race was won by Worknesh Degefa, who took an early lead and built up a large gap between herself and the other runners, in 2:23:31. The men's and women's wheelchair races were won by Daniel Romanchuk in 1:21:36 and Manuela Schär in 1:34:19, respectively.

Course

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The marathon distance is officially 42.195 kilometres (26.219 mi), as sanctioned by the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF), now known as World Athletics.[1] The start is in the town of Hopkinton and the first 6 miles (9.7 km) are downhill through Ashland and into the city of Framingham.[2] Leaving Framingham, the runners enter the town of Natick, before passing through the "Scream Tunnel" at mile 12. This area is lined by young women from the nearby Wellesley College who request kisses from runners, a tradition that has been in place for more than 100 years.[3] At mile 15, there is a large downhill section, followed by a 0.75-mile (1.21 km) climb at mile 16 crossing the Yankee Division Highway. The runners take a right turn onto Commonwealth Avenue in Newton before starting the first of the four Newton Hills.[2]

Course map
Finish line on Boylston Street in 2012

The first hill is a steep 1,200-yard (1,100 m) climb, the second about 0.25 miles (0.40 km), the third a steep 800 yards (730 m) before the runners start the infamous "Heartbreak Hill" at just after mile 20.[2][4] At half a mile long and with a 3.3% percent incline, it is not especially difficult, but due to the hill being 20 miles (32 km) into the race, it is still feared as the runners' legs are usually tired at this point.[2][5] The course is mostly downhill to the end, and passes through Boston College before entering Cleveland Circle and Kenmore Square, where there are many spectators.[2] The final mile has a slight incline, before it flattens off to finish on Boylston Street.[2][5]

Field

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The 2019 edition of the marathon included nine previous winners of the race.[6] The elite women's race included the 2018 winner Des Linden, who had the ninth-fastest personal best in the field. Sally Kipyego, runner-up in the 2016 New York City Marathon and the 10,000 metres at the 2012 Summer Olympics also competed. The fastest woman in the field was Aselefech Mergia, who ran 2:19:31 to win the 2012 Dubai Marathon. Mergia raced alongside three other sub-2:20 runners; Edna Kiplagat, Mare Dibaba, and Worknesh Degefa.[7] Jordan Hasay, who had been dealing with injury and had pulled out of the previous year's race the day before, returned to race.[8] Also running were 2015 winner Caroline Rotich and 2012 winner Sharon Cherop. The field included 11 sub-2:23 runners.[9]

The elite men's race featured 2018 winner Yuki Kawauchi. The Boston Herald listed "five men to watch": Geoffrey Kirui, winner in 2017 and whose personal best was 2:06:27, Soloman Deksisa (personal best of 2:04:40), Lawrence Cherono (personal best of 2:04:06), Lelisa Desisa, winner in 2015 and whose personal best was 2:04:45, and Hiroto Inoue (personal best of 2:06:54) who was debuting in Boston.[10] Others who had run sub-2:05 were Sisay Lemma (best of 2:04:08) and Lemi Berhanu (best of 2:04:33).[7] The men's wheelchair race featured four-time winner Marcel Hug and ten-time winner Ernst van Dyk, whilst the women's featured Manuela Schär, the first woman to record a sub-1:30 in Boston. Also racing were Sandra Graf, and Americans Amanda McGrory, Susannah Scaroni, and Tatyana McFadden.[9]

The day before the race, the winners of the previous year's race spoke to a crowd in Copley Square about subjects such as their diet and the mental challenges in marathons.[11]

Race summary

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Lead pack of men approaching the half-way point
Lead pack of women (except Worknesh who was over a minute ahead) approaching the half-way point

In the early morning, rain had made the conditions wet but by the start there was only some light rain which cleared away later in the day.[12][13] The race began with a flyover of General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcons from the 104th Fighter Squadron. In the men's race, Inoue and Kawauchi went to the front of the lead pack early on and, following a series of sub-5 minute miles, the group of 25 passed 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) in 30:20.[14] The lead pack didn't "get really serious about hard racing" until they had passed through Wellesley. By Heartbreak Hill the pack still contained eight runners but, at 21 miles (34 km), Kiriu increased the pace, decreasing the size of the group to just five runners.[15] The group had further reduced to three by mile 24; Cherono, Desisa, and Kenneth Kipkemoi.[16] With 1 mile (1.6 km) to go, Kipkemoi increased the pace. Then with 1 kilometre (0.62 mi) left, Desisa made a surge before Cherono was able to catch up and the two sprinted down Boyleston Street. Desisa was unable to hold Cherono's pace and he dropped behind, meaning Cherono won in 2:07:57, two seconds ahead of Desisa.[16][15] Kipkemoi finished third in 2:08:07,[16] later stating that he had wanted to get away from the other runners, but they had managed to stay with him.[15] The gap between the top two runners was the closest since the 1988 edition.[17][18]

In the women's race, Sara Hall took control early on, passing 5 kilometres (3.1 mi) in a "slow" time of 17:34, but Degefa overtook her about not long after. She had built up a small gap on the pack by 4 miles (6.4 km) with Cherop and Dibaba attempting to stay close. However, by 10 kilometres (6.2 mi), Degefa was 14 seconds ahead of the two and 29 seconds ahead of the chasing group.[19] Degefa passed through halfway in 1:10:40 and had managed to extend her lead to nearly three minutes by 30 kilometres (19 mi).[16] The chasing group comprised 12 runners through the halfway point, but the group began to break up in the following hills.[20] With 10 miles (16 km) left, Kiplagat made a move from the chasing group[16] and in the 22nd mile, moved into second place and began to catch Degefa.[20] However, despite running the fastest 5 kilometres (3.1 mi) split in the race (16:08 between the 35th and 40th kilometres), Kiplagat was too far from Degefa and she won in 2:23:31.[19] Kiplagat finished second, 42 seconds back in 2:24:13 and Hasay in third, a further 67 seconds back in 2:25:20.[16]

In the men's wheelchair race, Daniel Romanchuk passed Masazumi Soejima at mile 16 and won in 1:21:36, an American record. At 20 years old, he was the youngest winner in the history of the race and the first American since Jim Knaub won in 1993.[21] Soejima finished second in 1:24:30 and Hug took third in 1:24:42.[18] Romanchuk called the victory an "amazing thing to happen".[12][22] In the women's race, Schär took the lead. McFadden was in sight of the leaders when she slipped on a railroad track around mile six, causing her wheelchair to flip. Schär "cruised to victory" in 1:34:19 while McFadden was able to recover lost ground, finishing in 1:41:35 to take second place, one second ahead of Madison de Rozario.[23][12] The Boston Herald described Schär as "dominant" and "increasing her lead at every checkpoint".[12]

Results

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Manuela Schär
Daniel Romanchuk

Results reported by NBC Sports[24] and the Boston Athletic Association.[25][26]

Men's results
Place Athlete Nationality Time
1 Lawrence Cherono  Kenya 2:07:57
2 Lelisa Desisa  Ethiopia 2:07:59
3 Kenneth Kipkemoi  Kenya 2:08:07
4th Felix Kandie  Kenya 2:08:54
5th Geoffrey Kirui  Kenya 2:08:55
6th Philemon Rono  Kenya 2:08:57
7th Scott Fauble  United States 2:09:09
8th Jared Ward  United States 2:09:25
9th Festus Talam  Kenya 2:09:25
10th Benson Kipruto  Kenya 2:09:53
Women's results
Place Athlete Nationality Time
1 Worknesh Degefa  Ethiopia 2:23:31
2 Edna Kiplagat  Kenya 2:24:13
3 Jordan Hasay  United States 2:25:20
4th Meskerem Assefa  Ethiopia 2:25:40
5th Des Linden  United States 2:27:00
6th Caroline Rotich  Kenya 2:28:27
7th Mary Ngugi  Kenya 2:28:33
8th Biruktayit Eshetu  Ethiopia 2:29:10
9th Lindsay Flanagan  United States 2:30:07
10th Betsy Saina  Kenya 2:30:32
Wheelchair men's results
Place Athlete Nationality Time
1 Daniel Romanchuk  United States 1:21:36
2 Masazumi Soejima  Japan 1:24:30
3 Marcel Hug  Switzerland 1:24:42
Wheelchair women's results
Place Athlete Nationality Time
1 Manuela Schär  Switzerland 1:34:19
2 Tatyana McFadden  United States 1:41:35
3 Madison de Rozario  Australia 1:41:36

References

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  1. ^ "IAAF Competition Rules for Road Races". International Association of Athletics Federations. 2009. Archived from the original on September 23, 2015. Retrieved April 5, 2021.
  2. ^ a b c d e f Mayer Irvine, Heather (March 19, 2020). "Here's How to Run Your Best Boston Marathon". Runners World. Retrieved April 5, 2021.
  3. ^ Turchi, Megan (April 12, 2018). "Kissing, posters, and so much screeching: A history of the Wellesley College 'Scream Tunnel'". Boston.com. Retrieved April 5, 2021.
  4. ^ Dwyer, Dialynn (April 3, 2019). "How Heartbreak Hill got its name". Boston.com. Retrieved April 5, 2021.
  5. ^ a b "Boston Marathon: Mile-By-Mile Runners' Guide". WBZ-TV. April 1, 2019. Retrieved April 5, 2021.
  6. ^ "Boston Marathon fields loaded with past winners and global medallists". World Athletics. January 10, 2019. Retrieved March 27, 2021.
  7. ^ a b Chaves, Chris (January 10, 2019). "Nine Past Champions Headline 2019 Boston Marathon Professional Races". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved March 27, 2021.
  8. ^ Lorge Butler, Sarah (April 11, 2019). "Older, Wiser, Stronger: Jordan Hasay Heads to Boston Healthy". Runners World. Retrieved March 27, 2021.
  9. ^ a b Mahoney, Andrew (January 10, 2019). "Elite field set for 2019 Boston Marathon". Boston.com. Retrieved March 27, 2021.
  10. ^ Connolly, John (April 14, 2019). "Five men to watch in Boston Marathon". Boston Herald. Retrieved March 27, 2021.
  11. ^ Francis, Anne (April 14, 2019). "Yuki Kawauchi's secret weapon". Canadian Running Magazine. Retrieved March 27, 2021.
  12. ^ a b c d Pearson, Keith (April 15, 2019). "Daniel Romanchuk, Manuela Schar capture Boston Marathon push rim wheelchair crowns". Boston Herald. Retrieved March 28, 2021.
  13. ^ Sgobba, Christa (April 15, 2019). "The Top Highlights of the 2019 Boston Marathon". Runners World. Retrieved March 28, 2021.
  14. ^ Connolly, John (April 16, 2019). "Lawrence Cherono wins Boston Marathon men's race". Boston Herald. Retrieved March 27, 2021.
  15. ^ a b c Robinson, Roger (April 15, 2019). "Wild Sprint Leads to Lawrence Cherono Winning the Boston Marathon". Runners World. Retrieved March 27, 2021.
  16. ^ a b c d e f Morse, Parker (April 15, 2019). "Degefa dominates, Cherono outsprints Desisa in Boston". World Athletics. Retrieved March 27, 2021.
  17. ^ Martin, Jill (April 15, 2019). "Cherono and Degefa win in Boston Marathon debuts". CNN. Retrieved March 28, 2021.
  18. ^ a b Boren, Cindy (April 15, 2019). "Lawrence Cherono wins closest Boston Marathon since 1988; Worknesh Degefa dominates women's race". The Washington Post. Retrieved March 28, 2021.
  19. ^ a b "Worknesh Degefa Takes Off Early, Holds On Late to Win Her First Boston Marathon Title, Jordan Hasay 3rd, Des Linden 5th". LetsRun.com. April 15, 2019. Retrieved April 16, 2019.
  20. ^ a b Lorge Butler, Sarah (April 15, 2019). "Worknesh Degefa of Ethiopia Is the Boston Marathon Women's Winner". Runners World. Retrieved March 28, 2021.
  21. ^ "BAA 'apologizes sincerely' for American flag thrown on ground during ceremony". WCVB-TV. April 15, 2019. Retrieved April 13, 2021.
  22. ^ Svokos, Alexandra (April 15, 2019). "Daniel Romanchuk becomes youngest to win men's wheelchair division of Boston Marathon". ABC News. Retrieved March 28, 2021.
  23. ^ Bird, Hayden (April 15, 2019). "After flipping over in her wheelchair, Tatyana McFadden rallied to finish 2nd in the Boston Marathon". Boston.com. Retrieved April 16, 2019.
  24. ^ "2019 Boston Marathon results". Olympics.nbcsports.com. April 15, 2019.
  25. ^ "Top Finishers - Boston Athletic Association - BAA.org". Boston Athletic Association. Archived from the original on September 18, 2018. Retrieved April 15, 2019.
  26. ^ "Top Finishers - 2019 Boston Marathon results Leaderboard". Boston-iframe.r.mikatiming.net.
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