For release: Sunday, November 8
Courtesy photos for use here; please credit B.A.A.
Event Records, Fast Finishes Highlight 2026 Boston Half presented by Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and the Jimmy Fund
More than 7,400 participants took part in the annual half marathon, starting and finishing at Franklin Park
BOSTON – A pair of event records were set and countless personal bests were achieved at today’s 2026 Boston Half presented by Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and the Jimmy Fund, starting and finishing within Franklin Park.
First to finish were Habtom Samuel (Eritrea), Fentaye Belayneh (Ethiopia), Yen Hoang (USA), and Daniel Romanchuk (USA), earning wins in the open and wheelchair divisions on a chilly but picture-perfect autumn morning in Franklin Park. Samuel and Romanchuk earned event records, while Belayneh and Hoang relied on sprints to take home titles. Behind the champions, more than 600 athletes running on behalf of Team Dana-Farber Cancer Institute raised nearly $1 million.
Searchable results and leaderboards for today’s race are available here: https://bstnmar.org/26HalfResults.
Samuel’s winning time of 59:49 was not only an event record, but also the first time an athlete has run under one-hour for the half marathon in Massachusetts. Breaking from the pack shortly after 15K (9.3 miles), Samuel distanced himself from 2023 champion Abel Kipchumba (Kenya) and last year’s third place finisher Andrea Kiptoo (Kenya). He’d run the final four miles along the Emerald Necklace alone.
“I knew when we were just crossing the 10K mark, we were on for the course record. I saw there was a possibility,” said Samuel. “I knew the first 10K was very flat and downhill, but the second half was the hardest part of the course. I said, ‘I’m going to fight for the course record!’ and I knew when we crossed, I knew I got the course record.”
Samuel’s winning time shaved 45 seconds from the previous event record of 1:00:34 set 13 years ago by two-time Boston Marathon champion Lelisa Desisa. Samuel’s sprint to the finish coincided with a thrilling duel between women’s wheelchair stars Yen Hoang and Jenna Ayers, who were also battling for a win. Samuel, Hoang, and Ayers crossed the finish simultaneously, crowning a pair of champions in the blink of an eye.
Rounding out the podium were Kiptoo (1:01:03) in second and Kipchumba (1:01:16) in third. Top American honors went to Jack Aho (1:01:53) in sixth; his time is the fastest time by an American in event history (previous best 1:01:57 by Chandler Gibbens in 2025). Ethan Shuley, Wesley Kiptoo and B.A.A. High Performance Team member James Mwaura followed Aho across the line in seventh, eighth, and ninth place, respectively. Boston-based Mwaura finished his debut half marathon in 1:03:10.
Fentaye Belayneh became the first woman to win the Boston Half in three consecutive years, crossing the finish with a time of 1:09:14. She out-sprinted second-placer Winfred Mbithe (KEN) by two seconds.
As American Kassie Parker took an early lead, Belayneh, Mbithe, and the rest of the front pack stayed patient through the course’s rolling hills. Through 5K in 16:38 and 10K in 33:02, Belayneh was conserving energy before using her patented finish sprint which has led her to victory here before.
Rising the final hill into Franklin Park, Belayneh unleashed her kick and finished just ahead of Mbithe (1:09:16), with Ethiopia’s Sintayehu Lewetegn third in 1:09:26. Posing with the winner’s trophy, Belayneh held up three fingers signaling her historic three-peat.
“I come here because I know the event is great,” the Ethiopian star said through an interpreter after finishing. “I love the atmosphere, and I’ve won twice before.”
Sydney Vaught, running her first half marathon, took fifth place and top American honors in 1:09:44. B.A.A. High Performance Team member Megan Hasz Sailor was seventh in 1:09:53.
“It was a really challenging course, off the hills,” said Vaught, the USA champion at 10,000m on the track. “I didn’t really know what to expect going in, so I was super happy.”
HOANG, ROMANCHUK RETURN TO TOP OF WHEELCHAIR DIVISION PODIUM
Defending champion Yen Hoang earned back the women’s wheelchair division title in a nail-biting showdown with fellow American Jenna (Fesemyer) Ayers. It came down to a photo-finish to determine who was the winner.
From start to finish, the two American wheelchair stars competed side by side, with Hoang taking victory by a fraction of a second; both finished with a time of 1:02:54. Following Ayers in third was Hannah Dederick, who rounded out the podium in 1:03:38.
“It was awesome. I wasn’t sure how it would go because it’s a little windy,” said Hoang, who also won in 2025. “I got to push with my longtime teammate and friend Jenna Fesemyer [Ayers]. So that was a lot of fun; that was our photo finish there. I really enjoyed it.”
Daniel Romanchuk returned to the winner’s podium for the third time in the last five years after winning in 2022 and 2024. Romanchuk set the event record in the wheelchair division today with a time of 45:53, breaking his own record of 47:38 from 2024. Romanchuk also was named champion at the B.A.A. 10K presented by Mass General Brigham Cancer Institute in June and earned second place at the 130th Boston Marathon presented by Bank of America in April.
“It’s just great to be back in Boston. I do lots of races in Boston, like the marathon as well, and really, both my youth coaches actually were from Boston,” said Romanchuk, describing the extra meaning to break the tape again. He shaved 1:46 off his previous event record. “Growing up, I would hear stories about the Boston Marathon and their other races. It’s just great to be able to race here.”
Evan Correll of the USA finished second in 51:13, followed by Kohen Grantom, also of the USA, just two seconds behind in 51:15.
In the Para Athletics Division, event records were set by Aymon Langlois, T11-T13; Thomas Cantara, T20; and Daniel Buckelew, T35-T38 in the men’s division. In the women’s division, event records were set by Lisa Maciel, T45/T46/T47; and Kelly Bruno, T42-T44/T61-T64.
Athletes from 104 countries and 46 states took part, running along a course featuring autumn views of the Emerald Necklace Park System.
A complete list of open, wheelchair, and Para Athletics Division champions can be found below.
| DIVISION | CHAMPION |
| Men’s Open Division | Habtom Samuel, Eritrea, 59:49* |
| Women’s Open Division | Fentaye Belayneh, Ethiopia, 1:09:14 |
| Men’s Wheelchair Division | Daniel Romanchuk, USA, 45:53* |
| Women’s Wheelchair Division | Yen Hoang, USA, 1:02:54 |
| Top American Men’s Finisher | Jack Aho, 1:01:53 |
| Top American Women’s Finisher | Sydney Vaught, 1:09:44 |
| Men’s T11-T13 (Vision Impairment) | Aymon Langlois, USA, 1:28:39* |
| Women’s T11-T13 (Vision Impairment) | Jennifer Herring, USA, 1:41:23 |
| Men’s T20 (Intellectual Impairment) | Thomas Cantara, USA, 1:15:53* |
| Men’s T35-T38 (Coordination Impairment) | Daniel Buckelew, USA, 1:50:49* |
| Women’s T35-T38 (Coordination Impairment) | Cristina Burbach, USA, 1:46:18 |
| Men’s T45/T46/T47 (Upper-limb Impairment) | Atsbha Gebremeskel, Ethiopia, 1:27:04 |
| Women’s T45/T46/T47 (Upper-limb Impairment) | Lisa Maciel, USA, 1:49:07* |
| Men’s T42-T44/T61-T64 (Lower-limb Impairment) | Peter Keating, USA, 1:25:56 |
| Women’s T42-T44/T61-T64 (Lower-limb Impairment) | Kelly Bruno, USA, 1:35:12* |
| * Pending Event Record |
DANA-FARBER FUNDRAISING CONTINUES TO GROW
Since 2003, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and the Jimmy Fund have raised $12.9 million through the Boston Half, helping to support groundbreaking cancer research and exceptional patient care. Each of the 650+ Team Dana Farber and Jimmy Fund athletes participating at Sunday’s race have raised at least $1,000 to support patient care and cancer research, totaling nearly $1 million and continuing to grow. Those interested in supporting Dana-Farber’s team can make a donation here.
ADDITIONAL NOTES
City of Boston Mayor Michelle Wu kicked the race off at Franklin Park, welcoming runners and spectators. “We are all about making Boston the best city for families, where you live, your fullest life, and hopefully, be connected to the community, and that’s what the B.A.A. works with us on every single day. You’re expanding opportunities for young people, you’re making historic projects like White Stadium possible, so we are so proud to partner with you and by next fall, when we look back there, instead of a construction site, we will have the best student-athletics complex in the country – for soccer, for cross country, for track and field, for football. We’ll welcome you all back here then to really celebrate and kickoff a huge way in Boston’s next chapter for youth sports and for our health and wellbeing overall. Have a great race today.”
Mayor Wu was joined by Diana Fernandez Bibeau, Commissioner of the Boston Parks and Recreation Department and Deputy Chief of Open Space.
More than 3,500 participants entered today aiming to complete the 2026 B.A.A. Distance Medley presented by Honda, a three-race series which includes April’s Boston 5K, June’s B.A.A. 10K, and November’s Boston Half. The B.A.A. Distance Medley series provides athletes a year-long way to experience training and racing at three different distances, with the aim of improving fitness throughout the calendar year. Registration for the 2027 B.A.A. Distance Medley will open in January.
The Boston Half was a family-friendly event for athletes and spectators of all ages. Free youth events were offered on race morning within Franklin Park, featuring bibs and medals for all young racers.
ABOUT THE BOSTON ATHLETIC ASSOCIATION (B.A.A.)
Established in 1887, the Boston Athletic Association is a non-profit organization with a mission of promoting a healthy lifestyle through sports, especially running. The B.A.A. manages the Boston Marathon, and supports comprehensive charity, youth, and year-round programming. The 131st Boston Marathon presented by Bank of America will be held on Monday, April 19, 2027.
The Boston Marathon is part of the Abbott World Marathon Majors, along with international marathons in Tokyo, London, Cape Town, Sydney, Berlin, Chicago, and New York City. For more information on the B.A.A., please visit www.baa.org.
MEDIA CONTACTS
Chris Lotsbom, Senior Director of Communications & Public Relations
Anusha Mookherjee, Senior Manager of Public Relations
Celia Oswitch, Manager of Communications