Schedule of events for the 2018 Boston Marathon
BOSTON – The Boston Athletic Association (B.A.A.), organizer of the 2018 Boston Marathon, has issued its schedule of events for the 122nd Boston Marathon, to be run on Monday, April 16, 2018.
Below are notes regarding the public schedule of events for participants, and pertinent storylines entering the 122nd Boston Marathon. For the 33rd year, John Hancock is the principal sponsor of the Boston Marathon.
PUBLIC SCHEDULE OF EVENTS FOR PARTICIPANTS & SPECTATORS
Friday, April 13
Participant Number Pick-up at the John Hancock Sports & Fitness Expo: 11:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m.
Seaport World Trade Center, Boston
The 41st annual John Hancock Sports & Fitness Expo features more than 150 exhibitors and is widely regarded as the running industry’s premier showcase for new products, services, and events. Admission is complimentary courtesy of John Hancock, Conventures, Inc., and the B.A.A.
Saturday, April 14
Participant Number Pick-up at the John Hancock Sports & Fitness Expo: 9:00 a.m. – 7:00 p.m.
Seaport World Trade Center, Boston
B.A.A. 5K: 8:00 a.m.
Boston Common, Boston
Nearly 10,000 participants will take part in the tenth annual B.A.A. 5K, starting and finishing on Charles Street adjacent to Boston Common. The race course will pass over the Boston Marathon finish line. Race registration is closed.
B.A.A. Invitational Mile: 10:30 a.m.
Boylston Street, Copley Square, Boston
The B.A.A. Invitational Mile features some of the world’s top professional milers. High school and middle school athletes representing the eight host cities and towns of the Boston Marathon route will also participate in races.
B.A.A. Relay Challenge: 1:00 p.m.
Boylston Street, Copley Square, Boston
Eighteen middle schools from around Greater Boston will convene for the 22nd consecutive year for the B.A.A. Relay Challenge. The culmination of a month-long program taught by volunteer coaches, the B.A.A. Relay Challenge will feature students passing the baton and cheering their teammates near the Boston Marathon finish line.
Sunday, April 15 - One Boston Day
Participant Number Pick-up at the John Hancock Sports & Fitness Expo: 9:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m.
Seaport World Trade Center, Boston
Boston Marathon Pre-Race Dinner: 4:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.
City Hall, Boston
A complimentary dinner for official participants. Guests may purchase additional tickets at the Party Ticket Booth in the T-shirt Pick-up area of the Expo.
Monday, April 16 - 122nd Running of the Boston Marathon
Mobility Impaired: 8:40 a.m. ET
Men's Push-Rim Wheelchair: 9:02 a.m. ET
Women's Push-Rim Wheelchair: 9:04 a.m. ET
Handcycles & Duos: 9:25 a.m. ET
Elite Women**: 9:32 a.m. ET
Elite Men & Wave One: 10:00 a.m. ET
Wave Two: 10:25 a.m. ET
Wave Three: 10:50 a.m. ET
Wave Four: 11:15 a.m. ET
Boston Marathon Awards Ceremony: 5:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m.
Fairmont Copley Plaza Hotel, Boston
The top 10 overall men and women; men’s and women’s wheelchair champions; top three Age Group winners in all divisions; and top three Visually Impaired finishers will receive their awards. This ceremony is open to the public.
Boston Marathon Mile 27 - Official Post-Race Party presented by Samuel Adams: 6 :30 p.m. - 10:00 p.m.
Fenway Park, Boston
Participants can celebrate their accomplishment, experience America’s most beloved ballpark, and taste Samuel Adams products. Boston Marathon Mile 27 is complimentary for runners, and guests may purchase tickets at the Party Ticket Booth in the T-Shirt Pick-up area of the Expo.
STORYLINES ENTERING THE 2018 BOSTON MARATHON
- This year’s B.A.A. Year of Service recognizes those who serve our country, our community, and the B.A.A.’s mission. From law enforcement personnel and fire fighters to active and retired military personnel, doctors, nurses, and EMTs, the B.A.A. will continue to highlight and recognize many people for their commitment to service.
- To commemorate the centennial anniversary of the 1918 Boston Marathon military relay, this year’s race will incorporate a celebratory military relay. Sixteen service members from different branches of the military will be part of this ceremonial occurrence and will pass the baton to each other as they run along the course. Each military relay runner has ties to a community along the marathon route.
- Defending champions Geoffrey Kirui, Edna Kiplagat, Marcel Hug, and Manuela Schar all return aiming to re-claim their titles. Hug and Schar established new event records and world bests at last year’s Boston Marathon in the Wheelchair division, timing 1:18:04 and 1:28:17, respectively. Additionally, four other Boston Marathon champions will toe the line on Patriots’ Day as part of the John Hancock Elite Athlete Team. They include Buzunesh Deba (women’s course record holder), Caroline Rotich, Lelisa Desisa, and Lemi Berhanu. In the wheelchair division, eight champions return: Hug, Schar, ten-time winner Ernst van Dyk, four-time winner Tatyana McFadden, Joshua Cassidy, Masazumi Soejima, Hiroyuki Yamamoto, and Shirley Reilly.
- Amby Burfoot will celebrate the 50th anniversary of his 1968 win by running the Boston Marathon. Burfoot finished in 4:18:29 last year and is a member of an exclusive club of runners who have completed a marathon in seven straight decades. He won Boston while still a student at Wesleyan University, coached by John J. Kelley (the only B.A.A. member to ever win the Boston Marathon). Roberta “Bobbi” Gibb will also be celebrated at the Boston Marathon for her 50th anniversary. Gibb was the first woman across the finish in 1968 (of three women racing); this was the final year of Gibb’s three-year win streak – 1966, 1967, 1968. She will start the elite women’s race.
- Leading the charge on John Hancock’s Elite U.S. Team is Marblehead-native Shalane Flanagan, who triumphantly won the 2017 TCS New York City Marathon last November. Flanagan returns to her home state to run Boston, leading the American field that includes two-time Olympic medalist Galen Rupp, American record holder Deena Kastor, and last year’s third place finisher Jordan Hasay. Also running are Des Linden (2011 runner-up), Providence-based Molly Huddle (Boston debut), Dathan Ritzenhein (three-time Olympian) and Abdi Abdirahman (last year’s Masters champion).
- An array of human interest stories has been compiled and can be pitched upon request.