04/18/2023 By Meg Richards
Hellen Obiri, a two-time Olympic medalist from Kenya, won the women’s division of the Boston Marathon. The race, which has been an annual Boston tradition for 127 years, attracted 30,000 runners from around the globe, including Obiri.
“I thought I could do my fastest in New York, but it never worked as planned,” she said in an interview with The Associated Press. “So what I learned from New York was to be patient and for the right time to go.”
Obiri trained in Boulder, Colorado, after moving to the U.S. weeks ago. She was not the only one representing her country, though—Evans Chebet of Kenya won the men’s division, making this a “complete Kenyan Sweep,” according to The AP.
She completed the 26.2-mile course in 2 hours and 20 minutes, finishing in first place in rainy Boston.
The gloomy conditions did not stop these runners though, nor their cheerleaders. Attendees flooded Boylston Street Monday morning to greet runners as they crossed the finish line. Spirits were high despite the pouring rain, fog and winds.
When the marathon began in 1897, women were not initially allowed to compete. This year, nearly 13,000 participants, almost half of all runners, were women.