26 photos that capture the tears and triumph of the 2026 Boston Marathon

Tens of thousands of athletes. Countless emotions. One iconic course.

April 20, 2026 | 5:38 PM

2 minutes to read

The road from Hopkinton to Boylston Street is paved with sweat, tears, agony, and joy, as 2026 Boston Marathon athletes know all too well.

Photos from Monday’s race capture the Boston Marathon in all its glory, from the perseverance on Heartbreak Hill to the emotional catharsis at the finish line.

Tens of thousands of athletes. Countless emotions. One iconic course. Here are 26 of the best photos from the 2026 Boston Marathon.

Caleb Dayley kisses his fiancée, Lainglee Dayley, after finishing his first Boston Marathon. – Erin Clark/Boston Globe Staff

Men’s wheelchair champion Marcel Hug gets his helmet ready at the start in Hopkinton. – David L Ryan/Boston Globe Staff

Camilo Cubillos of Colombia at the finish line. – Photo by Paul Rutherford/Getty Images

This girl on West Central Street in Natick offered professional male athletes orange slices. – Pat Greenhouse/Boston Globe Staff

Conrad Davis and Joseph Chase partake in alcoholic beverages atop Heartbreak Hill. – Finn Gomez for The Boston Globe

A runner lays on the ground after crossing the finish line. – Photo by Joseph Prezioso / AFP via Getty Images

Kenyan runner John Korir poses cheekily with the trophy after finishing in first place in the men’s division. – Photo by Joseph Prezioso / AFP via Getty Images

Runners arrive at the Athletes’ Village. – Craig F. Walker/Boston Globe Staff

Sharon Lokedi of Kenya floats across the finish line to win the women’s division, successfully defending her 2025 win. – Photo by Paul Rutherford/Getty Images

Wellesley College students cheer for the men’s wheelchair and hand cycle competitors. – Suzanne Kreiter/Boston Globe Staff

Michael Ottesen of the United States. – Photo by Paul Rutherford/Getty Images

Former President Bill Clinton and his wife, former first lady and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, smile as their daughter Chelsea poses for a picture with her friend after the pair completed the Boston Marathon. – Jessica Rinaldi/Boston Globe Staff

Eden Rainbow-Cooper summits Heartbreak Hill during Monday’s race on her way to winning by more than two minutes. – Finn Gomez for The Boston Globe

Medical volunteer Stephanie Heart, left, holds up runner Aislinn Malone at the finish line. – Danielle Parhizkaran/Boston Globe Staff

Vasileia Panteri of Greece raises her arms toward family after finishing her first Boston Marathon. – Erin Clark/Boston Globe Staff

Former Boston Bruin Zdeno Chára after crossing the finish line. – Danielle Parhizkaran/Boston Globe Staff

A runner is helped as he collapses after crossing the finish line. – Jessica Rinaldi/Boston Globe Staff

Sara Cornelius hugs her son Ace after finishing the Boston Marathon. – Erin Clark/Boston Globe Staff

Stephen Rouch is decked out in sunscreen atop Heartbreak Hill. – Finn Gomez for The Boston Globe

Wellesley College student Suhani Khandelwal cheers on runners. – Suzanne Kreiter/Boston Globe Staff

Ernest Tsui grimaces after Heartbreak Hill. – Finn Gomez for The Boston Globe

Family members cheer for their loved ones along Boylston Street near the finish line. – Erin Clark/Boston Globe Staff

A runner embraces a loved one after finishing the Boston Marathon. – Erin Clark/Boston Globe Staff

Runners help each other toward the finish line. – Jessica Rinaldi/Boston Globe Staff

Spectators reach down to congratulate a runner after he crossed the finish line. – Jessica Rinaldi/Boston Globe Staff

Confetti flies for Daniel So before Heartbreak Hill. – Finn Gomez for The Boston Globe

Abby Patkin is a general assignment news reporter whose work touches on public transit, crime, health, and everything in between.

Sign up for the Today newsletter

Get everything you need to know to start your day, delivered right to your inbox every morning.

    !function(f,b,e,v,n,t,s)
    {if(f.fbq)return;n=f.fbq=function(){n.callMethod?
    n.callMethod.apply(n,arguments):n.queue.push(arguments)};
    if(!f._fbq)f._fbq=n;n.push=n;n.loaded=!0;n.version='2.0';
    n.queue=[];t=b.createElement(e);t.async=!0;
    t.src=v;s=b.getElementsByTagName(e)[0];
    s.parentNode.insertBefore(t,s)}(window, document,'script',
    'https://connect.facebook.net/en_US/fbevents.js');
                const onetrustStorageConsent = JSON.parse(localStorage.getItem( 'consent_one_trust_bdc' ) );
        if ( ( onetrustStorageConsent !== null ) ) {
            /* The above code is parsing the JSON data from the local storage and storing it in a variable.
             * Checking if the user has given consent for the cookie C0004.
             * If the user has given consent, the variable consent will be set to 'grant'.
             * If the user has not given consent,the variable consent will be set to 'revoke'.
             * Documentation https://developers.facebook.com/docs/meta-pixel/implementation/gdpr
            */
            if ( onetrustStorageConsent.C0004 !== true ) {
                fbq('consent', 'revoke');
                fbq('dataProcessingOptions', []);
            } else {
                fbq('consent', 'grant');
                fbq('dataProcessingOptions', ['LDU'], 0, 0);
            }
        }
            fbq('init', '989222871864976');
    fbq('track', 'PageView');



    !function(f,b,e,v,n,t,s){if(f.fbq)return;n=f.fbq=function()
    {n.callMethod? n.callMethod.apply(n,arguments):n.queue.push(arguments)}
    ;if(!f._fbq)f._fbq=n;
    n.push=n;n.loaded=!0;n.version='2.0';n.queue=[];t=b.createElement(e);t.async=!0;
    t.src=v;s=b.getElementsByTagName(e)[0];s.parentNode.insertBefore(t,s)}(window,
    document,'script','https://connect.facebook.net/en_US/fbevents.js');
                const onetrustStorageConsent = JSON.parse(localStorage.getItem( 'consent_one_trust_bdc' ) );
        /* The above code is parsing the JSON data from the local storage and storing it in a variable.
         * Checking if the user has given consent for the cookie C0004.
         * If the user has given consent, the variable consent will be set to 'grant'.
         * If the user has not given consent,the variable consent will be set to 'revoke'.
         * Documentation https://developers.facebook.com/docs/meta-pixel/implementation/gdpr
        */
        if ( ( onetrustStorageConsent !== null ) &amp;&amp; (onetrustStorageConsent.C0004 !== true ) ) {
            fbq('consent', 'revoke');
            fbq('dataProcessingOptions', []);
        } else {
            fbq('consent', 'grant');
            fbq('dataProcessingOptions', ['LDU'], 0, 0);
        }
            fbq('init', '813236348753005');
    fbq('track', 'PageView');

Source link