Get the latest Boston sports news
Receive updates on your favorite Boston teams, straight from our newsroom to your inbox.
Marcel Hug wins the 2024 Boston Marathon men’s wheelchair division by breaking his own record
Hug earned his seventh win in Boston.
For the seventh time in his legendary career, Swiss racer Marcel Hug won the men’s wheelchair division of the Boston Marathon, smashing his own previous course record in the process. Hug finished with a time of 1:15:33 (besting his 2023 record by 1:33), dominating a talented field despite crashing into a barrier as he made the famous “firehouse turn” in Newton.
Hug, 38, got out to a strong start in the race, establishing a lead of more than a minute by the time he reached Natick. At the halfway point, Hug was more than 30 seconds ahead of the pace for a course record, according to the Boston Athletic Association.
Advertisement:
By the time he reached the Newton Hills, Hug held a seemingly unassailable lead. This was tested when he took a corner too quickly before heading up the Newton hills, resulting in his wheelchair colliding with a barrier. Hug was fortunately unharmed and quickly recovered. He was back on his way within moments.
“I had a high speed at the corner,” Hug said after the race. “I tried to steer but my guess is that I had too much pressure [and] too much weight on the steering, so it didn’t steer properly.
“I hit the barriers, luckily I didn’t fall out of the racing chair,” he added. “My first thought was hopefully the chair is OK, nothing was broken, and then I just tried to push back up on both wheels and accelerate as fast as possible because I knew I was on schedule for the course record so it was still possible to break it.”
Advertisement:
The man known as the “Silver Bullet” (due to his distinctive racing helmet) is one of the most decorated athletes in the history of the Boston Marathon. He first won in 2015, unseating longtime champion Ernst Van Dyk.
Since first breaking through, Hug has dominated Boston, winning each year with the exceptions of 2019 and 2022 (and 2020, when the competition was canceled due to the pandemic). In addition, Hug has won 14 other “Major” marathons. On the world stage, he’s has totaled 12 medals (six of which are gold) at the Paralympic Games.
To comment, please create a screen name in your profile
To comment, please verify your email address
Conversation
This discussion has ended. Please join elsewhere on Boston.com