Boston Marathon Winners Chebet, Obiri Sock Away $150K Rainy Day Fund
On a rainy Patriots’ Day day in Boston, Evans Chebet of Kenya defended his Boston Marathon title, winning the 127th running of the race in 2:05:54. He will receive $150,000 in prize money for his victory. Gabriel Geay of Tanzania finished 10 seconds behind for second, and Benson Kipruto, Chebet’s countryman and 2 Running Club teammate, wrapped up the podium with a third-place finish, 12 seconds behind the winner.
Eliud Kipchoge, the reigning Olympic gold medalist who is widely considered the best marathoner of all time, was heavily favored to win in his first Boston Marathon race, but the Kenyan fell off of the top pack around the 20-mile mark and finished in 2:09:23, good for sixth overall.
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Scott Fauble, the top American, finished seventh overall, closely followed by Matthew McDonald, Conner Mantz and CJ Albertson who finished 10th, 11th and 12th, respectively.
For the women, Kenya’s Hellen Obiri broke the tape first in 2:21:38, in just her second marathon. She adds the World Marathon Major title to her storied career, which includes two Olympic silver medals in the 5,000 meters. Like Chebet, Obiri will collect $150,000 in prize money for her win.
The top five women, including top-finishing American Emma Bates at No. 5, ran in a close pack for much of the back half of the race and finished within 30 seconds of each other. Along with Bates, five other American women finished in the top 20, including 2020 U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials winner Aliphine Tuliamuk (11th in 2:24:37), 2020 London Marathon silver medalist Sara Hall (17th in 2:25:48) and 2018 Boston Marathon winner Des Linden (18th in 2:27:18).
Marcel Hug of Switzerland won the men’s wheelchair race in 1:17:06, his sixth Boston Marathon victory and a course record (breaking his own) by nearly a minute. American Susannah Scaroni crossed first to win the women’s wheelchair race in 1:41:45, her first win in nine Boston Marathon races. Both racers will take home $25,000 for their victories, and Hug will get an additional $50,000 for the new course record.
“It was a great race but also a difficult race in these conditions,” Hug told Sage Steele on the ESPN broadcast, referencing how the rain on the course left little room for error for the wheelchair racers.
A total of $879,500 will be distributed for prize money; the first 10 finishers in the men’s and women’s open and wheelchair races will take home a piece, along with the first three finishers in the Masters division and the para division.
While most Boston Marathon runners secure their bib by running an elusive Boston Marathon qualifying time, about 20% of the runners in the field earn their spot through fundraising with marathon partners. They are estimated to raise about $40 million this year, per the Boston Athletic Association, which brings the total raised through the marathon to more than $500 million since 1989.
John Hancock has been the title sponsor of the Boston Marathon for the last 38 years, but last September, the company announced that it would not renew. Three weeks ago, Bank of America said it would take over the naming role starting with the 2024 race. Bank of America is also the title sponsor of the Chicago Marathon, another of the six World Marathon Majors.
David Ortiz, longtime Boston Red Sox slugger, was the marathon marshal on this rainy Patriots Day—10 years since a bombing rocked the finish line of the marathon. The Red Sox were scheduled to play the Los Angeles Angels starting at 11:10 a.m. ET but are in a rain delay, and the Boston Bruins kick off their playoffs tonight at 7:30 p.m. ET against the Panthers at home.
(This story will be updated.)
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