What to know about the 2025 Boston Marathon
Find out the date, how to qualify, and more details about the 129th Boston Marathon.
Tens of thousands of athletes from around the world will return to Boston on April 21, 2025 for the 129th Boston Marathon.
The qualifying window for the 129th Boston Marathon began on Sept. 1, 2023, and registration details will be announced following this year’s race.
The 2024 Boston Marathon, which had one of the best elite fields in race history, was set against a picture-perfect spring day. Sisay Lemma, of Ethiopia, won the men’s division, and Hellen Obiri, of Kenya, won the women’s division.
The qualifying times for men, women, and non-binary runners are listed on the marathon website, along with qualifying rules. Only a certified full marathon distance is accepted. Upcoming marathons can be found at marathonguide.com, runnersworld.com, and raceraves.com.
The world’s oldest annual marathon, which takes place every year on Patriots Day, stretches 26.2 miles from Hopkinton to Boston’s Back Bay.
Runners begin the historic Boston Marathon course on Main Street in Hopkinton and follow Route 135 through Ashland, Framingham, Natick, and then into Wellesley. The route continues on Route 16 through Newton Lower Falls before turning onto Commonwealth Avenue, which is Route 30. They follow the avenue through the Newton hills and past the reservoir onto Chestnut Hill Avenue to Cleveland Circle. After that, runners turn left on Beacon Street, through Brookline, past Kenmore Square, and under Massachusetts Avenue. Finally, runners turn right onto Hereford Street and left onto Boylston Street before finishing near the Boston Public Library at Copley Square.
Newton’s famous Heartbreak Hill is one of the most challenging parts of the course. Check out a map of the course.
Plenty of events take place around Boston during marathon weekend, such as the Boston Marathon Expo and Fan Fest, as well as the morning Red Sox game at Fenway Park.
The Boston Marathon is televised both locally and nationally.
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