What do you know about Boston marathon? Part 1.

Apparently, it’s the flattest in the country, is mostly ran on narrow country lanes, and had 466 finishers.

What do you know about the Boston marathon? Part 2.

It’s definitely not flat, with one section called ‘Heartbreak Hill’, is an achievement in itself to even qualify for entry, and features nearly 30,000 athletes from more than 100 countries.

Oh, & they’re 3242 miles apart.

Overseas in Massachusetts, we’re very proud to say that four of our amazing runners completed the Boston marathon, collecting the coveted unicorns over the famous finish line. Up bright and early, they alighted classic yellow school buses to take them to the start, where amongst the throng of thousands, two of our ladies crossed paths to grab a selfie and wish each other good luck on their 26.2 journeys. Even from the live stream, it was clear to see the dismal conditions, but that didn’t stop them conquering the miles, on a day where Kipchoge showed that perhaps he is human after all, and Evans Chebet retained his title in 2:05:54.

For Ivanhoe however, first past the post (okay in his yellow vest, but we’re all friends here) was John Finn. It was his 2nd outing at the exclusive event, and scored a course PB in 3:26:38. Clare Wood ran her 6th marathon, and collected her 2nd major star after qualifying in Manchester, coming excruciatingly close to her PB in 3:34:20, a truly sensational effort from our Cloud Trail 20 champion.

And well, what about our next two? Coming home with not one, but two incredible medals each (we hope they had enough allowance on their luggage), and one travelling back via Grenada, were two role models of the club, Helen Finn and Heather Swan. Their times were 4:26:06 and 4:43:11, another two great performances on the dreary day and at the finish collected their Abbott World Marathon Major medal to join a very special club of runners. Simply amazing feats, followed years of graft. Congratulations.

So, why mention the UK version? Well, we were represented there too. And by who you ask? Ian Kirk, of course! Our marathon legend completed his 143rd 26.2 (WOW!) in 3:49:42.

Written by Emily Partridge - last updated on 29/04/2023