Locals Place in World's Oldest Marathon

In a race which Kenya's Geoffrey Mutai, 29, ran the fastest marathon in recorded history (2:03:02), three Middletown residents also took part in the 115th annual Boston Marathon Monday.

Middletown Patch congratulates David A. Gladstone, 49, (3:23:24), Rebecca Burke, 35, (3:47:59) and Paulina Ciccone, 29, (4:00:01).

Did you know ...

1. The Boston Marathon is the world’s oldest marathon, as it has been run since 1897.

2. In 2011, 26,923 runners will participate in the Boston Marathon. 4,307 of these runners are from outside the United States.

3. For the 100th Marathon in 1996, there were a record 38,708 official Boston Marathon entrants, and 36,748 of these runners participated in the 100th running of the Marathon.

4. Women were not allowed to officially enter the marathon until 1972.  In 1967, Kathrine Switzer was the first woman to run with a number, as she registered using her initials K.V. rather than her first name and posed as a male.

5. The Boston Marathon is held on Patriot’s Day. Until 1969 this was every April 19th.  Beginning in 1969, the holiday was observed on the 3rd Monday of the month… and Marathon Monday as we now know it was born!

6. The current course records are 2:05:52 (men) and 2:20:43 (women).

7. In 1980 Rosie Ruiz appeared to win the Boston Marathon but officials later discovered she took the subway and was disqualified. It seemed Ruiz completed the race in 2:31:56, the fastest time ever recorded for a woman in the Boston Marathon's history.  Suspicions mounted about Ruiz almost immediately. Men's winner Bill Rodgers noticed that Ruiz couldn't seem to recall many things that most runners know by heart, such as intervals and splits.  Several spotters at checkpoints throughout the course didn't remember seeing her in the first group of women. She also didn't appear in any pictures or video footage.  More evidence against Ruiz surfaced when two college students recalled seeing Ruiz burst out of a crowd of spectators on Commonwealth Ave, half a mile from the finish. It was revealed that Ruiz rode the subway for much of the race.  A week after the marathon the Boston Athletic Association disqualified Ruiz. 

8. The nickname HeartbreakHill originated in 1936; that's 75 years ago from a story written by Boston Globe reporter Jerry Nason. Heartbreak Hill is located between miles 20 and 21 of the marathon course, and is the last of the four Newton hills. While running through the hills, John Kelley caught race leader Ellison “Tarzan” Brown, patting him on the shoulder and passing him.  Brown rallied and regained the lead on the 4th of the Newton Hills, “breaking Kelley’s heart," reporter Nason wrote. Brown maintained the lead, and won the race.

9. During the first few years of the Boston Marathon, the course was only 24.8 miles long.  It was run from Metcalf’s Mill in Ashland to the Irvington Oval in Boston.  In 1924, the start was moved from Ashland to Hopkinton extending the race to 26.2 miles.

10. The Boston Marathon receives the second largest amount of media coverage in the world for a one day sporting event, second only to the Superbowl.  More than 1,000 members of the media from 200 outlets across the world will cover the the race.

11. The 1975 marathon was the first to include a wheelchair division.

12. Extreme weather is is nothing to to Boston Marathon racers. In the 114 runnings here's the worst of it:

• 1961- Snow squalls, heavy wind, temperatures of 39 degrees
• 1970- Very heavy rain, temperatures in the low 40s
• 1976- Sunny with temperatures reported to be 96 degrees along the course

13. The Boston Marathon will bring $132.2 million in spending impact to the Greater Boston region, according to Greater Boston Convention & Visitor Bureau President and CEO, Patrick Moscaritolo.

14. Charitable organizations receive a limited number of bibs from the BAA.  Those who get a bib through this application process receive a waiver, meaning they don’t have to qualify by time but must meet the minimum fund-raising goal of $3,250.  The Boston Marathon Official Charity Program began in 1989  and the program has since grown to support 24 charities, which have raised more than $100 million for the causes they support.

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