The Boston Marathon Fact Sheet

A guide to the world's most celebrated road race

by Erin Teare Martin and Mike Morrison

Joseph Chebet of Kenya in 1999. (Source/AP)

The Boston Marathon Virtual Tour: A no-sweat guide to the world's most famous race

Where | From Hopkinton, MA, to Boston (26.2 miles)

When | Monday, April 18, 2011 race begins at 10:00 A.M., with earlier starts for wheelchair (9:17 A.M.), handcycle (9:22 A.M.), and elite women (9:32 A.M.). This year, there will be three waves releasing the rest of the field, at 10:00 A.M., 10:20 A.M., and 10:40 A.M..

Who | The field consists of over 26,000 runners, representing athletes from every state in the nation and over 90 countries. The race record was 38,708 for the 100th anniversary in 1996. There will also be well over a half-million spectators lining the course.

2010 Winners

Men's Open:
Robert Kiprono Cheruiyot (Kenya), 2:05:52

Women's Open:
Teyba Erkesso (Ethiopia), 2:26:11

Men's Masters:
James Koskei (Kenya), 2:17:28

Women's Masters:
Denise C. Robson (Canada), 2:43:16

Men's Push Rim Wheelchair:
Ernst Van Dyk (South Africa), 1:26:53

Women's Push Rim Wheelchair:
Wakako Tsuchida (Japan), 1:43:32

2009 Winners

Men's Open:
Deriba Merga (Ethiopia), 2:08:42

Women's Open:
Salina Kosgei (Kenya), 2:32:16

Men's Masters:
James Koskei (Kenya), 2:14:52

Women's Masters:
Colleen De Reuck (USA), 2:35:37

Men's Push Rim Wheelchair:
Ernst Van Dyk (South Africa), 1:33:29

Women's Push Rim Wheelchair:
Wakako Tsuchida (Japan), 1:54:37

2008 Winners

Men's Open:
Robert K. Cheruiyot (Kenya), 2:07:46

Women's Open:
Dire Tune (Ethiopia), 2:25:25

Men's Masters:
Gino S. Van Geyte (Belgium), 2:23:36

Women's Masters:
Firaya Sultanova-Zhdanova (United States), 2:47:17

Men's Push Rim Wheelchair:
Ernst F. Van Dyk (RSA), 1:26:49

Women's Push Rim Wheelchair:
Wakako Tsuchida (Japan), 1:48:32

2007 Winners

Men's Open:
Robert K. Cheruiyot (Kenya), 2:14:13

Women's Open:
Lidiya Grigoryeva (Russia), 2:29:18

Men's Masters:
Oleg Strizhakov (Russia), 2:28:55

Women's Masters:
Heidy Lozano (United States), 2:56:03

Men's Push Rim Wheelchair:
Masazumi Soejima (Japan), 1:29:16

Women's Push Rim Wheelchair:
Wakako Tsuchida (Japan), 1:53:30

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.

$806,000 in prize money is up for grabs in 2011.

In terms of media coverage, the Boston Marathon is the second biggest single-day sporting event in the U.S., just behind the Super Bowl. 500,000 spectators are expected to line the course in 2011. (This former runner would like to give a special thanks to the women of Wellesley College, who come out in full force every year to cheer on the participants.)

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

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

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

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 2009, the top three elite women finishers were separated only by nine hundredths of a second.

In 2011, the word on iPods is, while their use is not encouraged, only elite men and women and those eligible for prize money are not allowed to use headphones.