Must-see moments from the 2024 Boston Marathon
Emotional finishes from new and reigning champions, dramatic upsets, and a wheelchair crash.
Thousands of athletes raced toward Boston’s Copley Square on Monday, and many more thousands of fans cheered them on from Hopkinton, through Wellesley College’s Scream Tunnel, and at the finish line on Boylston Street.
Here are some of the unforgettable moments from the 128th Marathon.
A crash and a major upset: Wheelchair division winners
The wheelchair athletes were the first to cross the finish line Monday morning. Reigning champion Marcel Hug won the men’s wheelchair division by shattering his own course record with a 1:15:33 marathon.
At the “firehouse turn” in Newton Hills, Hug crashed into a barrier and appeared to almost completely dismount his racing wheelchair. Despite the crash, the Silver Bullet continued his record-breaking race.
He pulled into Copley Square, breaking the finish line tape with a cheer.
A relatively new competitor Eden Rainbow-Cooper secured the win in the women’s wheelchair division, beating out Manuela Schar, a frequent Boston Marathoner with a course record and multiple wins.
Rainbow-Cooper got emotional with loved ones as the race’s announcers said her name.
Thousands take off from Hopkinton
About 30,000 athletes are conquering the Boston Marathon’s infamous course this year. Watch the huge flock of runners take off into Boston under sunny skies on Monday.
Wellesley Scream Tunnel
Wellesley College students — historically known for kissing the runners — pressed against the course barriers at the Scream Tunnel, holding signs and cheering for the runners. American front-runner Emma Bates, leading the pack of professional women’s runners there, gave out high-fives to the screaming fans.
Lemma, Obiri pull ahead of competitors
The women’s field raced in a pack through most of the race, but reigning women’s division champion Hellen Obiri pulled ahead late in Kenmore Square and never looked back.
Men’s division winner Sisay Lemma handily won after three previous attempts (two DNFs and a 30th-place finish). He hit a world’s best halfway time at just over an hour and crossed the finish line with the nearest runner nearly a minute behind.
Meb Keflezighi competes again, 10 years later
Meb Keflezighi was the first American to win the Boston Marathon in more than 30 years in 2014, just a year after the Boston Marathon bombing. This year, he returned to the Boston course to raise money for his foundation.
Keflezighi sported a 2014 bib in honor of his historic win, when he was considered an underdog. The 48-year-old crossed the finish line of the 2024 Marathon just after 1 p.m., hand-in-hand with fellow competitors and waving an American flag.
Officers help athlete finish the race
Multiple police officers helped a runner on the final stretch of the Marathon. Video shared shows the runner walking slowly and leaning on the officers toward the finish on Boylston Street.
1968 winner completes his 28th Boston Marathon
77-year-old Ambrose “Amby” Burfoot wore the 1968 bib this year in homage to his 2:22:17 win more than 50 years ago. He completed this year’s marathon with a time of 4:59:58.
This year marks his 28th time racing the Boston Marathon, The Boston Globe reported.
Grand Marshal Gronk honored
Off the course, it was Gronk’s day. Former Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski was named grand marshal of the Marathon and also threw the first pitch at the Patriots Day Red Sox game Monday morning.
He wound up for the first pitch but spiked it to the crowd’s delight.
A golden meet-up
Before the Marathon, hundreds of golden retrievers met up to honor the race’s late mascot, Spencer. The golden died last year of canine cancer.
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