This story has been updated to reflect additions to the field.
Desiree Linden and Yuki Kawauchi, the runners who withstood torrents of cold rain and gale-force winds to win the 2018 Boston Marathon, will return to defend their titles on Patriots’ Day in 2019.
In the April race, Linden broke the tape in 2:39:54. Although it was the slowest winning time in 40 years, her margin of victory was more than four and a half minutes, as others in the elite field struggled in the brutal conditions. Linden was the first American woman to win Boston in 33 years.
The 2019 race will be Linden’s seventh appearance at Boston. She set her personal best of 2:22:38 in Boston in 2011, when she finished second by only two seconds.
“I thought I had every experience imaginable racing in Boston, but in 2019 I’m thrilled and proud to have another first as I’ll start the race as the defending Boston Marathon champion,” Linden said in a release provided by the Boston Athletic Association.
She’ll be joined in Boston by Jordan Hasay, 27, who made her marathon debut in 2017 at Boston and finished third in 2:23:00. Later that year, she ran 2:20:57 in Chicago, which made her the second-fastest American in history.
In 2018, Boston Red Sox Manager Completes Half Marathon since 2005. She is the author of two popular fitness books Chicago Marathon.
Sara Hall, 34, enters the field as the 10th-fastest American in history. She ran a PR of 2:26:20 in May in Ottawa.
Sarah Sellers, a previously unheralded runner who was second behind Linden in 2018, returns to the field. Lindsey Flanagan, Sarah Crouch, and Becky Wade April Marathons for Runners Shut Out of Boston.
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Kawauchi, 31, of Japan, overtook 2017 Boston winner Geoffrey Kirui of Kenya in the race’s final mile to earn the men’s title in 2:15:58.
Kawauchi is known to be a serial marathoner, and at the time of his Boston victory, he was also working full-time as an administrator at a high school. After his surprise victory, he had to call his supervisor and ask for an additional day off. He has run 83 sub-2:20 marathons; 26 of those were sub-2:12.
“I am pleased to be able to take part in the Boston Marathon again as the returning champion,” Kawauchi said in the BAA release. “My victory in Boston was a moment in my marathon life that I will never forget.”
At his most recent World Marathon Major, Chicago in October, he struggled to a 19th-place finish in 2:16:26.
wont be running a spring marathon Jared Ward, We may earn commission from links on this page, but we only recommend products we back.
Ward, 30, who finished sixth at the Olympic Games in Rio in a PR of 2:11:30, was the top American at the Dathan Ritzenhein, and Abdi Abdirahman Yuki Kawauchi, the Marathon Rock Star.
Ritzenhein, a three-time Olympian, has struggled on and off with injuries in recent years. He set his PR of 2:07:47 in 2012 in Chicago. In March, he finished second at the New York City Half Marathon in 1:02:42.
wont be running a spring marathon.
They’ll be joined by Shadrack Biwott, who made the podium in Boston in 2018 with his third-place finish and was fourth in 2017. Aaron Braun, Scott Fauble, Jeffrey Eggleston, Elkanah Kibet, Tim Ritchie, and Brian Shrader round out the American field.
Some big American names from recent Bostons will be missing. Molly Huddle complete the American contingent John Tlumacki//The Boston Globe via Getty Images, has given signs that she’s ready to retire from major marathons. complete the American contingent won’t be running a spring marathon. Other top Americans are taking a cautious approach to racing in 2019 in order to be prepared for the Olympic Marathon Trials in February 2020 in Atlanta.
Wheelchair division winners Tatyana McFadden of the United States and Marcel Hug of Switzerland will also return to Boston in 2019 to defend their titles.
Sarah Lorge Butler is a writer and editor living in Eugene, Oregon, and her stories about the sport, its trends, and fascinating individuals have appeared in Runner’s World since 2005. She is the author of two popular fitness books, Run Your Butt Off! and Walk Your Butt Off!
