04/18/2023 By Meghan O’Brien
The world-famous Boston Marathon took place Monday, bringing in runners and spectators from all across the globe. As a returning and beloved tradition for Boston, the marathon brought in many attendees who remained on the sidelines and in high spirits despite the recent downpours from early morning.
Many runners this year captured the hearts and minds of audiences on TV and in person. Evans Chebet and Helen Obiri, both Kenyan runners, won the men’s and women’s divisions, respectively. Kae Ravichandran of Vermont placed first in the nonbinary division. Swiss competitor and Paralympian Marcel Hug took first place in the men’s wheelchair division, breaking his record by only a minute.
Chebet was the first to cross the finish line, arriving at Copley Square and breaking the tape after only 2 hours, 5 minutes and 54 seconds. Defending his championship title, Chebet distinguished himself at the very beginning of the race by running a 4:40 minute mile average.
Obiri, who has become a household name for runners, entered the Boston Marathon late last month. The two-time silver medal Olympian arrived at the finish line only 16 minutes after Chebet, awarding Obiri the first marathon win of her career.
This year’s race included nearly 30,000 runners, 27 of whom were part of the nonbinary division which debuted this year.