BOSTON — The 2025 Boston Marathon is just four months away and both defending wheelchair champions will return to the course in April.
Switzerland’s Marcel Hug and Great Britain’s Eden Rainbow-Cooper will race the 26.2 miles from Hopkinton to Copley Square in the 129th Boston Marathon on April 21.
Hug earned his seventh Boston Marathon crown in course record time in 2024, finishing at 1:15:33, a world best. Rainbow-Cooper became the first British woman to win the wheelchair division since the race’s inception, finishing a minute and 30 seconds ahead of the competition with a final time of 1:35:11.
The 2025 Boston Marathon will also mark the 50th anniversary of Bob Hall’s pioneering 1975 finish when the Massachusetts native became the first official wheelchair finisher in race history.
“On this remarkable year marking a half-century of wheelchair racing on the roads leading to Boston, we’re proud to welcome the world’s best to compete for not only podium places and personal bests but also record-setting prize awards,” said Dr. Cheri Blauwet, B.A.A. Chair, and a two-time Boston Marathon champion. “We can expect memorable races unfolding from start to finish, culminating in great moments on Boylston Street.”
The wheelchair division prize is also being increased to the largest in event history. $262,500 is available to the top ten men’s and women’s finishers, with an additional $50,000 available if either course record is broken.
The champion’s prize is now $50,000, increased from $40,000 in recent years.
“I look forward to returning to Boston and building off last year when I broke the course record,” said Hug. “Boston’s course suits me well and I’m excited for the spring racing season to begin.” With another win, Hug will match Jean Driscoll for second on the all-time wins list, only behind Ernst van Dyk’s ten Boston crowns.
“2024 was an amazing year, with winning my first Abbott World Marathon Major at Boston and then going on to my debut Paralympic Games,” said Rainbow-Cooper. “I am so excited to return to Boston in 2025 and see what this year holds for me. Breaking the tape at Boston was a dream and I can’t wait to get out on the roads again.”
Other familiar faces will also be returning to the course. Manuela Schär of Switzerland, American champions Daniel Romanchuk, Susannah Scaroni, and Tatyana McFadden, as well as 2024 Boston Half champion Michelle Wheeler.
Switzerland’s Catherine Debrunner will race in Boston for the first time, coming off a career year that included six Paralympic medals.
For more information on the 129th Boston Marathon, visit the link here.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.
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