The 126th Boston Marathon, with arguably the strongest fields in race history, airs live on USA Network, Peacock, NBCSports.com/live and the NBC Sports app.
Coverage begins Monday at 8:30 a.m. ET. The schedule of start times:
Men’s wheelchair — 9:02 a.m. ET
Women’s wheelchair — 9:05
Handcycles and duos — 9:30
Pro men — 9:37
Pro women — 9:45
Para athletics — 9:50
Wave 1 — 10
Wave 2 — 10:25
Wave 3 — 10:50
Wave 4 — 11:15
BOSTON MARATHON PREVIEWS: Women | Men | U.S. Women’s Moment
The pro women’s and men’s runner fields are among the best ever assembled in Boston, perhaps the best, thanks in part to the London Marathon being moved from its traditional April date to the fall for a third consecutive year. Boston was also held in the fall last year due to COVID, but returns to its traditional Patriots’ Day date for the first time since 2019.
The world’s oldest annual marathon features arguably the world’s top two female marathoners today in Kenyans Peres Jepchirchir and Joyciline Jepkosgei.
Last year, Jepchirchir became the first person to win an Olympic gold medal and the New York City Marathon in the same year. Jepkosgei won the 2019 New York City Marathon and last fall’s London Marathon.
The women’s field also includes standout Americans — Tokyo Olympic bronze medalist Molly Seidel and 2018 Boston Marathon winner Des Linden.
Last week, the men’s field lost Ethiopian Kenenisa Bekele, the second-fastest marathoner in history, who withdrew because he was “just not ready,” his agent said. But the field arguably became stronger because of the additions of Ethiopians Birhanu Legese, the third-fastest marathoner ever, and Sisay Lemma, the reigning London winner.
Veteran major marathon winners Lawrence Cherono and Geoffrey Kamworor of Kenya and Lelisa Desisa of Ethiopia previously entered. Olympians Jared Ward and Jake Riley, plus Scott Fauble are the American headliners in the men’s runner field.
The wheelchair races include Swiss superstars Marcel Hug and Manuela Schar, plus American Daniel Romanchuk.
ON HER TURF: A look at the 50th anniversary of official women’s division
OlympicTalk is on Apple News. Favorite us!
Follow @nbcolympictalk
