More than 6,700 athletes take part in the 2024 Boston Half presented by Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and the Jimmy Fund

November 10, 2024

Fast times and a beautiful race day at New England’s signature half marathon

BOSTON /ENDURANCE SPORTSWIRE/ – The 2024 Boston Half presented by Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and the Jimmy Fund took place today under beautiful blue skies, starting and finishing within Boston’s Franklin Park. A total of 6,767 athletes started today’s race, with preliminary results for all finishers available here.

It was an adidas sweep at the front of the field, as Eritrea’s Yemane Haileselassie and Ethiopia’s Fentaye Belayneh sprinted to victories in the men’s and women’s open divisions, clocking times of 1:01:46 and 1:10:26. Americans Daniel Romanchuk (47:38) and Michelle Wheeler (1:00:25) won the men’s and women’s wheelchair divisions, respectively, with Romanchuk setting a new event record in the process.

After finishing seventh and third at the last two editions of this race, Haileselassie came in wanting a victory. By 10 miles the two-time Olympian had begun to gap the field, and by the finish he’d crossed in jubilation, breaking the tape 15 seconds ahead of Kenya’s Isaac Kipkemboi (1:02:01), with Canada’s Kieran Lumb rounding out the podium (1:02:03) in his debut half marathon. Robert Miranda was the top America, in fourth place in 1:02:09, notching the fastest time by an American in race history.

“Because I had a good training session, I knew I could win here,” said Haileselassie, admitting that the undulating hills played to his advantage. “It was a fantastic and really good course, and I liked it like that.”

The top seven women finished within a seven-second span, as Belayneh used every ounce of energy to sprint up the final hill and cross first in 1:10:26, ahead of fellow Ethiopians Mestawut Fikir (1:10:27) and Senayet Getachew (1:10:27). Not until the very end –with the finish in sight—did Belayneh believe she had enough in the tank to finish atop the podium.

“I knew Boston was a good course and I prepared very well, and I turned out to be the winner,” said Belayneh, who was 12^th here a year ago. “It was a tough race, but I knew I would hold on. I had a little bit leftover, and I used that to win.”

Top American women’s honors went to B.A.A. High Performance team member Megan Hasz, finishing tenth in her first half marathon in 1:11:27.

ROMANCHUK SETS EVENT RECORD, WHEELER EARNS FIRST BOSTON HALF TITLE

Seven days after winning the TCS New York City Marathon, Daniel Romanchuk cruised to victory in Boston, breaking his previous event record by more than three minutes. Romanchuk’s record-setting performance caps a tremendous year of racing that included two Paralympic medals in Paris.

“Until you cross the finish line, you never know what’s going to happen,” said the two-time Boston Marathon champion. “It’s an amazing way to end the season in Boston and I am really just looking forward to being back in the spring.”

Wheeler, a veteran of many B.A.A. races, came in ready to improve upon her third place finish a year ago. After 10 miles the Texan separated from Yen Hoang and ultimately won 1:00:25 to 1:01:53.

“I knew I had to have a game plan coming into this race because it was a very strong field of female wheelchair athletes,” said Wheeler. She plans to return for April’s Boston Marathon presented by Bank of America. “Absolutely I will be here!”

RECORD DAY IN PARA ATHLETIC DIVISIONS

Across the four Para Athletics Divisions, seven event records were set. Completing the ‘grand slam’ of B.A.A. race wins was Ethiopia’s Atsbha Gebremeskel, taking the T45/T46/T47 (Upper-limb impairment) Division in a pending world record 1:18:58. Gebremeskel now has won his division at the Boston Marathon, Boston 5K, Boston 10K, and Boston Half in 2024, completing an unprecedented sweep.

“I’m very happy to set the world record,” said Gebremeskel. “This was my first half marathon, and having done the 5K, 10K and Marathon in Boston, I had to do this… Thank you so much, Boston.”

2024 BOSTON HALF CHAMPIONS

Open Men: Yemane Haileselassie, 1:01:46

Open Women: Fentaye Belayneh, 1:10:26

Top American Open Men: Robert Miranda, 1:02:09^

Top American Open Women: Megan Hasz, 1:11:27

Wheelchair Men: Daniel Romanchuk, 47:38*

Wheelchair Women: Michelle Wheeler, 1:00:25

T11-T13 (Vision Impairment) Men: Irwin Ramirez, 1:33:14

T11-T13 (Vision Impairment) Women: Jennifer Herring, 1:42:02

T45/T46/T47 (Upper-limb Impairment) Men: Atsbha Gebremeskel, 1:18:58*

T45/T46/T47 (Upper-limb Impairment) Women: Adrienne Keane, 2:00:56*

T61-T64, T42-T44 (Lower-limb Impairment) Men: Marko Cheseto Lemtukei, 1:19:43*

T61-T64, T42-T44 (Lower-limb Impairment) Women: Kelly Bruno, 1:36:33*

T35-T38 (Coordination Impairment) Men: Joseph Drake, 1:19:43*

T35-T38 (Coordination Impairment) Women: Cristina Burbach, 1:42:21*

Non-Binary: Samuel Goldberg, 1:42:27

*Event Record

^Fastest American in Boston Half history

TEAM DANA FARBER RAISES $800,000+ TO DEFY CANCER

Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and the Jimmy Fund have partnered with the Boston Half since 2003 as the race’s presenting sponsor and exclusive charity team. Through this relationship, Dana-Farber runners have collectively raised more than $10 million to support groundbreaking cancer research at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, and enabled Dana-Farber scientists and clinicians to positively impact the lives of cancer patients around the world. Nearly 670 athletes were part of the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and the Jimmy Fund’s team for this year’s event, having raised more than $800,000 to defy cancer. Those interested in supporting Dana-Farber’s team can make a donation here.

BOSTON HALF FAST FACTS

• 6,767 athletes started the event, coming from 46 U.S. states (plus Washington, DC) and 93 countries.
• 3,284 participants were aiming to complete the 2024 B.A.A. Distance Medley, a three-race series which includes April’s Boston 5K, June’s Boston 10K, and November’s Boston Half. The B.A.A. Distance Medley series provides athletes a year-long way to experience training and racing at three different distances, with the aim of improving fitness throughout the calendar year.

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 129th Boston Marathon presented by Bank of America is scheduled to take place on Monday, April 21, 2025. The Boston Marathon is part of the Abbott World Marathon Majors, along with international marathons in Tokyo, London, Berlin, Chicago, and New York City. For more information on the B.A.A., please visit www.baa.org.

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Boston Athletic Association | www.baa.org | media@baa.org

Courtesy Photos Available here with credit to B.A.A.

More than 6,700 athletes take part in the 2024 Boston Half presented by Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and the Jimmy Fund