1970 Boston Marathon

Footrace in Boston, Massachusetts, USA 1970 Boston Marathon April 20, 1970 Boston, Massachusetts, U.S. 1,011 Ron Hill 2:10:30 Sara Mae Berman 3:05:07 1969 1971 The 1970 Boston Marathon took place on Monday, April 20, 1970. It was the 74th time the Boston Marathon was organized and featured 1,174 official entrants,https://www.newspapers.com/clip/123074906/untitled/ (untitled) AP Holyoke Transcript-Telegram Holyoke, Massachusetts 12 April 18, 1970 April 17, 2023 newspapers.com with 1,011 runners starting the event.https://www.newspapers.com/article/news-register-31-year-old-englishman-bre/171237310/ 31-Year-Old Englishman Breaks Boston Marathon Record in Rain UPI News Register Fremont, California 14 April 21, 1970 April 27, 2025 newspapers.com The weather was described as "a steady downpour." The race was won by Ron Hill of England in 2:10:30. http://www.coolrunning.com/boston/results2.htm A Goodbye from Cool Running! 12 January 2021 16 August 2012 25 June 2016 https://web.archive.org/web/20160625093518/http://www.coolrunning.com/boston/results2.htm dead Hill shattered the course record, set by Yoshiaki Unetani the prior year, by more than three minutes.https://www.newspapers.com/clip/123074666/hill-wins-baa-marathon/ Hill Wins B.A.A. Marathon The Boston Globe 1 Jack Craig April 20, 1970 April 17, 2023 newspapers.com Eamon O'Reilly of the United States finished second in 2:11:12, a new American record.Athletics Podium https://athleticspodium.com/champs/boston-marathon/1970-boston-marathon 2025-04-24 Athletics Podium en Hill and O'Reilly were the first two runners in the event's history to break 2 hours 12 minutes. Hill's pace, 4:58.6 per mile, made him the first runner in Boston Marathon history to average below five minutes per mile. His course record stood until the 1975 edition, when it was broken by Bill Rodgers. This was the first edition of the race to have a qualifying standard, as the entry form stipulated "A runner must submit the certification...that he has trained sufficiently to finish the course in less than four hours."https://www.baa.org/races/boston-marathon/history History of the Boston Marathon BAA.org Boston Athletic Association April 18, 2023 A disabled veteran in a wheelchair, Eugene Roberts, began before the official noon start of the race and went on to complete the course in approximately seven hours.https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-boston-globe-legless-viet-veteran-wh/195457187/ Legless Viet veteran wheels race distance Joe Concannon The Boston Globe 28 April 21, 1970 April 13, 2026 newspapers.comhttps://www.bostonglobe.com/2026/04/12/sports/bob-hall-boston-marathon/ Bob Hall, the father of wheelchair racing and a two-time winner of the Boston Marathon, dead at 74 The Boston Globe limited April 12, 2026 April 13, 2026 In 1970, Vietnam War veteran Eugene Roberts, who had lost both of his legs in the war, needed more than six hours to finish. Roberts is not recognized as a race champion.The first recognized wheelchair champion is Bob Hall of the 1975 Boston Marathon. Results thumb|right|upright=.66|Ron Hill in 1975 Men Position Athlete Nationality Time 1 Ron Hill 2:10:30 2 Eamon O'Reilly 2:11:12 3 Patrick McMahon 2:14:53 4 Pentti Rummakko 2:14:59 5 Kalle Hakkarainen 2:19:42 6 Ken Moore 2:19:47 7 Robert Moore Boston Athletic Association records list Moore as being a Canadian resident; contemporary news reports noted that he was originally from England.https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-boston-globe-unetani-turns-back-only/171216610/ Unetani Turns Back Only Challenge by Mexican Pair 37 Jerry Nason April 22, 1969 April 27, 2025 newspapers.com 2:20:07 8 Andy Boychuk 2:21:06 9 William Clark 2:22:17 10 Wayne Yetman 2:22:32 Source: Other notable participants included: Amby Burfoot (16th), José García (20th), John J. Kelley (63rd), and John A. Kelley (163rd). Women Women were not officially allowed to enter until 1972, but their first-place results from 1966 through 1971 were later ratified by the Boston Athletic Association.https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-boston-globe-worth-the-wait/171249274/ Worth the wait The Boston Globe 77 April 13, 1996 April 27, 2025 newspapers.com Sara Mae Berman, originally from The Bronx in New York City, finished first among women runners, credited with a time of 3:05:07.https://www.baa.org/races/boston-marathon/results/champions Champions Of The Boston Marathon baa.org Boston Athletic Association April 27, 2025 Berman is also recognized as the 1969 and 1971 women's champion. Position Athlete Nationality Time 1 Sara Mae Berman 3:05:07 2 Nina Kuscsik 3:12:16 3 Sandra Zerrangi 3:30:00 4 Diane Fournier 3:32:00 5 Kathrine Switzer 3:34:00 Source:https://bostonlog.com/1970-boston-marathon-results/ 1970 results bostonlog.com September 21, 2022 https://web.archive.org/web/20210303233606/https://bostonlog.com/1970-boston-marathon-results/ March 3, 2021 Wayback Machine Notes References 30em Category:Boston Marathon Boston Marathon Boston Boston Marathon Marathon Boston Marathon