Virtus athletes welcomed to the prestigious Boston Marathon

Earning a starting line spot at the Boston Marathon is the oldest, most sought-after accolade for distance runners from all over the world. And the recent news about inclusion and prize money for Virtus athletes has spurred excitement across our 90+ member nations and more than 500,000 athletes globally.

In a media statement released by the Boston Athletics Association, they announced the expansion of the para-athletics division for the Boston Marathon in 2024. This provides greater accessibility and opportunities to seven impairment groups, including the T20 (also called II1) group for athletes with intellectual impairment. The 128th running of the Boston Marathon will be held on Monday, April 15, 2024.

Read the full media statement from the Boston Athletics Association website.

Barry Holman, Virtus General Secretary and President of Athletes Without Limits( Virtus member in the U.S.A) said the announcement is a major win for inclusion in sport and a significant opportunity for Virtus’ long-distance runners to compete in a class of their own, be eligible to win prize money and showcase their best on a world stage.

“Runners from all over the world, plan for, train hard and compete to earn a Boston Marathon bib. Racing Boston is a dream come true for many runners and now Virtus athletes can share in that same dream.”

“Virtus congratulates the Boston Athletics Association on this major advancement in high-performance sports inclusion. And we celebrate the excitement of seeing intellectual impairment division runners take their mark to compete for a share of the $11,000 prize money on offer in the division.”

For the registration process, contact [email protected].