Boston Marathon - Race - Starting Times

Starting Times

Through 2005, the race began at noon (wheelchair race at 11:25 am, and elite women at 11:31 am), at the official starting point in Hopkinton, Massachusetts. Beginning with the 2006 event, the race has used a staggered "wave start," where (in 2006) top seeded runners (the elite men's group) and a first batch of up to 10,000 runners started at noon, with a second group starting at 12:30. Beginning in 2007 the starting times for the race were moved up, allowing runners to take advantage of cooler temperatures and enabling the roads to be reopened earlier. The marathon later added a third wave to help further stagger the runners and reduce congestion.

As of 2011, the starting times are:

  • 9:00 a.m.: Mobility Impaired Program
  • 9:17 a.m.: Push Rim Wheelchair Division
  • 9:22 a.m.: Handcycle Participants
  • 9:32 a.m.: Elite Women
  • 10:00 a.m.: Elite Men and First Wave
  • 10:20 a.m.: Second Wave
  • 10:40 a.m.: Third Wave

Read more about this topic:  Boston Marathon, Race

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