BOSTON— The Boston Athletic Association (B.A.A.) announced today the men’s professional field for the 127th Boston Marathon, featuring 15 men who’ve run under 2:07 for the marathon distance, as well as multiple Abbott World Marathon Major race champions, Olympic and Paralympic stars.
Today’s announcement expands upon four previously announced men’s entrants including world record holder and double Olympic gold medalist Eliud Kipchoge, reigning Boston Marathon champion Evans Chebet, 2021 winner Benson Kipruto, and two-time victor Lelisa Desisa. A total of 109 men’s athletes from 21 countries are in this year’s professional field across the men’s Open, Wheelchair, and Para Athletics Divisions.
“The Boston Marathon is known for its competitiveness, with many races decided in the final meters on Boylston Street,” said Mary Kate Shea, B.A.A. Director of Professional Athletes. “This year’s field brings together athletes who’ve excelled at both speed and championship-style racing. Combined with the women’s professional field announced on Monday, this will be the fastest and most decorated Boston Marathon across all of our divisions in race history.”
Behind Kipchoge and Chebet, the fastest man in the field will be Tanzanian national record holder Gabriel Geay, who finished runner-up at the Valencia Marathon last month in 2:03:00. Geay has had success racing on the roads of Boston, winning the 2018 B.A.A. 10K, placing fourth at last year’s Boston Marathon, and finishing in second and third at the B.A.A. Half Marathon in 2019 and 2018, respectively.
“I am excited to be returning to the Boston Marathon this year,” said Geay. “I fulfilled a dream by racing in Boston last year, but my goal is to one day win the race, and I hope that 2023 will be my year. Thank you, Boston for the opportunity!”
Joining Geay will be past Abbott World Marathon Majors winners including Albert Korir of Kenya (2021 New York City champion), Ghirmay Ghebreslassie of Eritrea (2015 World Championships gold medalist and 2016 New York City champion), and Shura Kitata of Ethiopia (2020 London Marathon champion). Brazilian Olympian and national record holder Daniel Do Nascimento will make his Boston debut, as will Ethiopia’s Herpasa Negasa, a 2:03:40 marathoner.
Last year’s seventh-place finisher and top American, Scott Fauble, returns for his fourth Hopkinton-to-Boston race, and will be joined by 50K world record holder CJ Albertson. After a 2:08:16 marathon debut in Chicago last year, Conner Mantz will take on the Boston course for the first time. He is coached by Olympic marathoner Ed Eyestone.
“I love the Boston Marathon. It’s one of the greatest sporting events in the world,” said Fauble. “It has a way of bringing the best out of people.”
"Boston is such a historic marathon, and I want to be a part of that history,” said Mantz. “I love the aspect of racing with no pacers and hills that break up rhythm, and Boston has both of those. When you add in the competition Boston is bringing this year with Eliud Kipchoge and many others, it makes the race so exciting!"
Ben True, a Maine native and four-time winner of the B.A.A. 5K, also is part of the American field. B.A.A. High Performance Team members Matt McDonald, Paul Hogan, and Jonas Hampton will have the hometown edge; McDonald set a new B.A.A. club record and lifetime best of 2:09:49 in Chicago last fall.
American Daniel Romanchuk will return as defending champion in the wheelchair division, coming off a 1:26:58 victory last April. Romanchuk also won Boston in 2019 (1:21:36), though he looks to be challenged by wheelchair marathon world record holder and reigning Paralympic marathon gold medalist Marcel Hug. Hug returns in search of his sixth Boston Marathon title and holds the Boston course record of 1:18:04. In 2022 the Swiss ‘Silver Bullet’ won the B.A.A. 5K in 10 minutes, 5 seconds, a course record time.
“Nothing can compare with the excitement and anticipation at the Boston Marathon,” said Romanchuk. “I’m incredibly excited and honored to be part of what should be a great race through the hills and all the way to Boylston Street.”
Aaron Pike, last year’s wheelchair division runner-up, and Ernst van Dyk, a ten-time Boston winner, are also racing. A $50,000 course record bonus is available to any open division or wheelchair division athlete who breaks a course record.
Paralympians Matthew Felton and Atsbha Gebre Gebremeskel lead the Para Athletics Division in the T46 classification (upper-limb impairment). American record holder and Massachusetts native Chaz Davis will look to defend his T12 (vision impairment) Para title.
Headlining the T62 and T63 classification are Marko Cheseto Lemtukei and Brian Reynolds. Cheseto Lemtukei earned a victory in 2:37:01 last year, while Reynolds set a pending T62 world record of 1:25:46 at the B.A.A. Half Marathon in November.
“A perfect society is one that sees diversity of its members as her strength,” said Cheseto Lemtukei, who returns as a two-time Boston Marathon Para Athletics Division champion.
The 127th Boston Marathon will be held on Monday, April 17, 2023 – Patriots’ Day in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts—and will feature 30,000 participants. The complete men’s professional field can be found below, while the complete women’s profession field can be found here. Since 1986, John Hancock has served as principal sponsor of the Boston Marathon.
BOSTON MARATHON PROFESSIONAL FIELD – MEN’S OPEN DIVISION
^ signifies Boston Marathon Champion
*signifies Masters (40+) athlete
|
NAME |
COUNTRY |
PERSONAL BEST |
|
Eliud Kipchoge |
Kenya |
2:01:09 WR |
|
Evans Chebet^ |
Kenya |
2:03:00 |
|
Gabriel Geay |
Tanzania |
2:03:00 NR |
|
Herpasa Negasa |
Ethiopia |
2:03:40 |
|
Benson Kipruto^ |
Kenya |
2:04:24 |
|
Lelisa Desisa^ |
Ethiopia |
2:04:45 |
|
Shura Kitata |
Ethiopia |
2:04:49 |
|
Daniel Do Nascimento |
Brazil |
2:04:51 NR |
|
John Korir |
Kenya |
2:05:01 |
|
Nobert Kigen |
Kenya |
2:05:13 |
|
Ghirmay Ghebreslassie |
Eritrea |
2:05:34 |
|
Andualem Belay |
Ethiopia |
2:05:45 |
|
Mark Korir |
Kenya |
2:05:49 |
|
Filmon Ande |
Eritrea |
2:06:38 |
|
Andamlak Belihu |
Ethiopia |
2:06:40 |
|
Isaac Mpofu |
Zimbabwe |
2:06:48 NR |
|
Hamza Sahli |
Morocco |
2:07:15 |
|
Michael Githae |
Kenya |
2:07:28 |
|
Albert Korir |
Kenya |
2:08:03 |
|
Conner Mantz |
USA |
2:08:16 |
|
Scott Fauble |
USA |
2:08:52 |
|
Melikhaya Frans |
South Africa |
2:09:24 |
|
Matt McDonald |
USA |
2:09:49 |
|
Nico Montanez |
USA |
2:09:55 |
|
Mick Iacofano |
USA |
2:09:55 |
|
Mustafa Mohamed* |
Sweden |
2:10:03 NR |
|
Hendrik Pfeiffer |
Germany |
2:10:18 |
|
CJ Albertson |
USA |
2:10:23 |
|
Nathan Martin |
USA |
2:11:05 |
|
Colin Mickow |
USA |
2:11:22 |
|
Wilkerson Given |
USA |
2:11:44 |
|
Turner Wiley |
USA |
2:11:59 |
|
Jonas Hampton |
USA |
2:12:10 |
|
Ben True |
USA |
2:12:53 |
|
Mick Clohisey |
Ireland |
2:13:19 |
|
Brian Shrader |
USA |
2:13:27 |
|
Paul Hogan |
USA |
2:14:55 |
|
JP Flavin |
USA |
2:14:55 |
|
Sam Chelanga |
USA |
2:15:02 |
|
Pardon Ndhlovu |
USA |
2:15:04 |
|
Joe Whelan |
USA |
2:15:36 |
|
Connor Weaver |
USA |
2:15:49 |
| Zachary Ornelas | USA |
2:16:01 |
|
Fernando Cabada* |
USA |
2:16:52 |
|
Edward Mulder |
USA |
2:16:55 |
|
Matt Lenehan |
USA |
2:17:02 |
|
Andrew McCann |
USA |
2:17:07 |
|
Jon Mott |
USA |
2:17:20 |
|
Jack Mastandra |
USA |
2:17:28 |
|
Brian Harvey |
USA |
2:17:40 |
|
Eduardo Garcia |
USA |
2:17:44 |
|
Adam Wollant |
USA |
2:17:53 |
|
Mark Messmer |
USA |
2:17:56 |
|
Jason Ayr |
USA |
2:18:14 |
|
Luis Carlos Rivero |
Guatemala |
2:18:30 |
|
Eric Ashe |
USA |
2:18:42 |
|
Austin O’Brien |
USA |
2:18:43 |
|
Gilles Rubio* |
France |
2:18:53 |
|
Sergio Reyes* |
USA |
2:19:51 |
|
Prescott Leach* |
USA |
2:19:57 |
|
Augustine Choge |
Kenya |
2:20:53 |
|
Markus Ploner* |
Italy |
2:22:39 |
|
Simon Poulin* |
Canada |
2:22:55 |
|
Dave Archer* |
Great Britain |
2:25:04 |
|
Steven Lawrence* |
USA |
2:25:22 |
|
Chip O’Hara* |
USA |
2:25:36 |
|
Anthony Bruns* |
USA |
2:25:45 |
|
Miguel Morone* |
Brazil |
2:25:54 |
|
Iain Hunter* |
USA |
2:26:06 |
|
Dennis Mbelenzi* |
Canada |
2:26:07 |
|
Zouhair Talbi |
Morocco |
Debut |
BOSTON MARATHON PROFESSIONAL FIELD – MEN’S WHEELCHAIR DIVISION
^ signifies Boston Marathon Champion
|
NAME |
COUNTRY |
PERSONAL BEST |
|
Marcel Hug^ |
Switzerland |
1:17:47 WR |
|
Ernst van Dyk^ |
South Africa |
1:18:04 |
|
Josh Cassidy^ |
Canada |
1:18:25 |
|
Aaron Pike |
USA |
1:20:02 |
|
Johnboy Smith |
Great Britain |
1:20:05 |
|
Hiroki Nishida |
Japan |
1:20:28 |
|
Kota Hokinoue |
Japan |
1:20:54 |
|
Daniel Romanchuk^ |
USA |
1:21:36 |
|
Rafael Botello |
Spain |
1:22:18 |
|
Patrick Monahan |
Ireland |
1:22:23 |
|
Sho Watanabe |
Japan |
1:24:00 |
|
Hermin Garic |
USA |
1:24:18 |
|
James Senbeta |
USA |
1:24:27 |
|
Simon Lawson |
Great Britain |
1:25:06 |
|
David Weir |
Great Britain |
1:26:17 |
|
Brian Siemann |
USA |
1:26:46 |
|
Evan Correll |
USA |
1:27:19 |
|
Jason Robinson |
USA |
1:29:01 |
|
Phillip Croft |
USA |
1:30:14 |
|
Jetze Plat |
Netherlands |
1:30:44 |
|
Wyatt Willand |
USA |
1:31:50 |
| Mark Millar | Ireland |
1:33:50 |
|
Sean Frame |
Great Britain |
1:36:19 |
|
Hitoshi Matsunaga |
Japan |
1:36:27 |
|
Valera Jacob Allen |
USA |
1:43:59 |
|
Dustin Stalberg |
USA |
1:44:28 |
|
Aidan Gravelle |
USA |
1:49:05 |
|
Jake Lappin |
Australia |
1:56:21 |
BOSTON MARATHON PROFESSIONAL FIELD – MEN’S PARA ATHLETICS DIVISION
|
NAME |
COUNTRY |
PERSONAL BEST |
CLASSIFICATION |
|
Matthew Felton |
Australia |
2:41:02 |
T46 (Upper-Limb Impairment) |
|
Atsbha Gebre Gebremeskel |
Ethiopia |
Debut |
T46 (Upper-Limb Impairment) |
|
Chaz Davis |
USA |
2:31:48 NR |
T12 (Vision Impairment) |
|
Alexander France |
USA |
2:48:17 |
T12 (Vision Impairment) |
|
Ary Carlos Santos |
Brazil |
2:43:39 |
T13 (Vision Impairment) |
|
Andrew Thorsen |
USA |
2:49:46 |
T13 (Vision Impairment) |
|
Marko Cheseto Lemtukei |
USA |
2:35:55 WB |
T62 (Lower-Limb Impairment) |
|
Brian Reynolds |
USA |
3:03:21 |
T62 (Lower-Limb Impairment) |
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 Boston Marathon is part of the Abbott World Marathon Majors, along with international marathons in Tokyo, London, Berlin, Chicago, and New York City. Since 1986, the principal sponsor of the Boston Marathon has been John Hancock. The 127th Boston Marathon is scheduled to take place on Monday, April 17, 2023. For more information on the B.A.A., please visit www.baa.org.