The Boston Marathon is almost always memorable, and Monday’s race was no exception.
Records were broken, and three American men broke into the top 10, two of them former BYU runners.
But the stories of inspiration and achievement go deeper than the finishing times and titles. From the starting line to the finish line, the race was filled with moments of human grit and connection.
Big wins at the 2025 Boston Marathon
John Korir of Kenya won the men’s race with a time of 2:04:45 according to CBS News.
Korir’s brother Wesley won the Boston Marathon in 2012. The Korirs are the first brothers to win the Boston Marathon, CBS News reported.
A Utah native and BYU graduate, Conner Mantz, finished in fourth place with a time of 2:05:08. He ran one of the all-time fastest marathons by an American, as the Deseret News previously reported.
Sharon Lokedi, from Kenya, won the women’s race and set a new record for the course. She finished the race with the time of 2:17:22.
This year was the 50th anniversary of the wheelchair division. Marcel Hug took first place, and it was his eighth Boston Marathon win.
Jess McClain was the top American woman runner. She finished in seventh place with a time of 2:22:43, per Runner’s World.
Des Linden ran her last marathon as a professional on Monday. In 2018, Linden became the first American woman to win the Boston Marathon since 1985, according to CBS News.
Linden finished in 17th place at the 2025 Boston Marathon.
Most inspiring moments of the race
Monday featured many moments that sparked emotions of awe and inspiration for runners and spectators alike.
The energy was unbelievable as Lokedi broke the course record.
William Richard watched the race in 2013 with his family when the Boston Marathon bombing took place. His son Martin was the youngest victim killed that day, according to The Washington Post.
Richard ran the Boston Marathon this year. His son and Martin’s brother, Henry Richard, also ran the Boston Marathon in honor of his brother, per WCVB.
Crowds grew emotional as one runner collapsed near the finish line.
Another runner sacrificed his time to stop his race in pursuit of helping another runner finish his own.
A spectator cheered on runners as they pushed up one of the course’s hardest hills, Heartbreak Hill, per Boston.com.
Matt Brown, 30, was paralyzed in a high school hockey accident 15 years ago, according to WCVB. Lucas Carr pushed Brown the entire 26.2 miles.
The 2025 race was Brown and Carr’s 11th Boston Marathon together, per Boston.com.
Runner Matthew Nawn pushed himself to the edge, collapsing just feet from the finish, per WCVB. But he didn’t let the fall stop him. Determined to finish what he started, Nawn crawled across the line.