28Record year of U.S.
half-marathon fi nishers.
2,046,600 people ran a
half marathon in 2014.
In fact, it’s been the fast-
est-growing distance for
more than a decade, and
the most popular run
distance. Lots of people
fi nd it a bit like Goldilocks
does: Neither too long
nor too short—just right.
It’s an intimidating but
approachable challenge,
and a good training dis-
tance for marathoners.
In other words, the half
marathon checks a lot
of boxes for a lot of peo-
ple—and nowadays, you
can fi nd these races most
everywhere.Terrorists detonate bombs
at the Boston Marathon.
Distance running and its
grandest race were thrust into
the spotlight once again, but
this time for horrifying reasons.
The sibling culprits, Tamerlan
and Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, were
brought to justice after a fi ve-
day citywide manhunt, but the
fact that terrorism came to
running—and an event that is a
celebration not only of the sport
itself, but also of each runner’s
personal triumph—shocked
many people. However, it galva-
nized runners everywhere, the
Boston Marathon’s popularity
surged, and its rich history of
being run on Patriot’s Day took
on greater meaning.The New York City Marathon
surpasses 50,000 entrants.
What’s often called the world’s
greatest city is also home to the
world’s largest race: For the past
several years, the New York City
Mrathon has hovered around
the 50,000-person mark, an
astonishing number of people
for one race. Also in 2013, the
New York City Marathon had its
1 millionth starter toe the start
line since the race’s founding
in 1970.2013 –
2014 –
Meb Kefl ezighi becomes the fi rst American man since 1983 to win the Boston Marathon.
To say that the 2014 Boston Marathon took on an added signifi cance is an enormous under-
statement. It was the fi rst edition following the terrorist bombings near the fi nish line in 2013.
Runners all around the world wanted to run in it. And Bostonians needed the catharsis of another
edition of the race to help heal the city and honor the victims. When American Meb Kefl ezighi,
who wore the names of victims on his race bib, unexpectedly won, it was an amazing moment
for American running—but it was also far bigger than that.Kenyan Dennis Kimetto sets the offi cial marathon world
record (2:02:57) at the Berlin Marathon. He beat former
record-holder Wilson Kipsang’s year-old mark by 26 seconds.
More importantly, though, it has sparked a conversation on
whether or not it’s possible to break the 2-hour marathon
barrier, and has inspired gear innovations (like Nike’s Zoom
Vaporfl y Elite) designed to help run the next world record.CM0617_FEAT_30YEARS.indd 28 5/11/17 5:16 PM