FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
John Hancock Announces 2018 Boston Marathon U.S. Elite Field
15 Member Team includes Olympic, World and Pan-American Medalists, Abbott
World Marathon Majors Champions, and North American Record Holders
BOSTON, MA, December 11, 2017-- John Hancock today announced its strongest
U.S. Elite Team since its principal sponsorship began in 1986. The team,
recruited to compete against an accomplished international field, will
challenge for the coveted olive wreath on Patriots' Day, April 16, 2018.
Four-time Olympian and 2017 TCS New York City Marathon champion Shalane
Flanagan headlines the field along with two-time Olympic medalist and 2017
Bank of America Chicago Marathon champion Galen Rupp. Joining them are
Olympians Desiree Linden, Dathan Ritzenhein, Abdi Abdirahman, Deena Kastor,
and Molly Huddle, the latter of whom is the North American 10,000m record
holder.
Also returning to Boston are Jordan Hasay and Shadrack Biwott. Hasay placed
third at the 2017 Chicago Marathon, and set the American marathon debut
record at Boston this year when she ran 2:23:00. Biwott finished as the
second American and fourth overall in Boston this year. Serena Burla, Ryan
Vail, Sara Hall, Scott Smith, Kellyn Taylor, and Andrew Bumbalough will
also compete on the John Hancock U.S. Elite Team at the 122nd running of
the Boston Marathon.
"The 2018 John Hancock U.S. Elite Team represents a dedicated group of
athletes who have consistently challenged themselves to compete with great
success on the world stage," said John Hancock Chief Marketing Officer
Barbara Goose. "We are honored to invite this team to the Boston Marathon
to lead 30,000 runners along the world's most historic marathon route."
"In the Boston Marathon's 122-year history, one will be hard pressed to
find a more accomplished American field than the one John Hancock has
established for 2018," said Tom Grilk, CEO of the B.A.A. "With Olympic
medalists, Abbott World Marathon Majors winners, American record holders
and more, this will be the most decorated U.S. fields in Boston Marathon
history. Many familiar faces return to the roads leading to Boston, while
others will be making their long-awaited debuts. And of course, it will be
especially engaging for local fans to welcome Marblehead's own Shalane
Flanagan back to follow up her magnificent triumph in New York."
John Hancock U.S. Elite Team Highlights:
Shalane Flanagan is the newly crowned New York City Marathon champion,
racing to the first U.S. women's title since 1977. A four-time Olympian,
Flanagan holds American records in the indoor 3,000m and 5,000m and in
the10K, 15K and 25K. She won the silver medal in the 10,000m at the 2008
Olympics and won the bronze medal at the 2011 IAAF World Cross Country
Championships. Flanagan was the 2012 U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials champion
and then finished ninth in the 2012 Olympic Marathon. Last year she was
third at the 2016 Trials and sixth at the 2016 Olympic Marathon in Rio de
Janeiro.
Galen Rupp returns to Boston after finishing runner-up this year. He
secured a commanding win at the 2017 Chicago Marathon in October. Last
year, Rupp won the bronze medal at the 2016 Olympic Marathon; at the 2012
Olympic Games, Rupp won the silver medal in the 10,000m. He holds four
American records: indoor 3,000m, 5,000m, and two-mile, and the outdoor
10,000m. Rupp ran and won his first marathon at the 2016 U.S. Olympic
Marathon Trials. Accomplished in the 10,000m, Rupp won the national
championship in that event from 2009 until 2016.
Desiree Linden, a two-time Olympian, returns to Boston after finishing
fourth this year. At the 2016 U.S. Olympic Trials she finished second and
then was seventh at the Olympics. A top-five finisher in seven Abbott World
Marathon Majors, Linden narrowly missed winning Boston in 2011 by two
seconds. Additional accomplishments include placing second at the 2010
Chicago Marathon, tenth at the 2009 IAAF World Marathon Championships,
second at the 2012 U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials and second in the 10,000m
at the 2015 Pan American Games.
Dathan Ritzenhein is the third fastest U.S. marathoner of all time with a
2:07:47 personal best. Career highlights for the three-time Olympian
include finishing ninth at the 2008 Olympic Marathon, winning the bronze
medal at the 2009 IAAF World Half Marathon Championships and finishing 13th
at the 2012 Olympic Games 10,000m. This year he won the U.S. 25K National
Championships.
Abdi Abdirahman placed sixth at the 2017 Boston Marathon, and earned the
Masters Division title. He also finished seventh in New York City this
year. In 2016, he finished as the top American and third overall at the New
York City Marathon. Abdirahman is a multiple national champion in the
10,000m, 10K, 10-mile and Half Marathon. He placed third in the 2012 U.S.
Olympic Marathon Trials, but did not finish the Olympic Marathon due to
injury.
Deena Kastor is a three-time Olympian and the U.S. record holder in the
marathon and the half marathon. Kastor won the 2004 Olympic Marathon bronze
medalist, the 2005 Chicago Marathon, the 2006 London Marathon, and the 2008
U.S. Olympic Trials Marathon. She has earned 18 national titles across
various distances and won two silver medals at the IAAF World Cross Country
Championships.
Molly Huddle is a has earned more than 20 national championship titles on
the track and roads. She set the American 10,000m record of 30:13.17 with
her sixth-place finish at the 2016 Olympics. Huddle is a three-time winner
of the B.A.A. 5K, and set an American record of 14:50 at the event in 2015.
She has also won the New York City Half Marathon the past three years. In
her marathon debut, she ran to a third place at the 2016 New York City
Marathon.
Jordan Hasay set an American debut record of 2:23:00 with her third-place
finish in Boston this year. She improved her time by two minutes at the
Chicago Marathon, finishing third in 2:20:57. An 18-time All-American at
the University of Oregon, Hasay won the 2007 IAAF World Youth Championships
1500m silver medal. She also won USA National Championship titles at 15K
and 20K on the roads in 2017.
Shadrack Biwott finished as the second American and fourth overall at this
year's Boston Marathon. Only his University of Oregon teammate Galen Rupp
finished higher with a second-place finish. Biwott finished seventh at the
U.S. Olympic Trials Marathon and fifth at the 2016 New York City Marathon
with a personal best time of 2:12:01.
Serena Burla finished 10th and 11th at the 2015 and 2017 IAAF World
Championships Marathon, respectively. Burla set her personal best marathon
this year in Osaka, running 2:26:53. In 2013, she finished runner-up at the
Amsterdam Marathon. A cancer survivor, Burla was diagnosed with synovial
sarcoma in her right hamstring. She had part of her right hamstring removed
in 2010, and had another malignant tumor removed this year after the World
Championships.
Sara Hall ran three marathons in 2017: She won the U.S. National Marathon
Championships, set a personal best time at the Frankfurt Marathon
(finishing fifth in 2:27:21), and placed sixth at the Tokyo Marathon. She
is married to Ryan Hall, who holds the American course record of 2:04:58 at
the Boston Marathon.
Ryan Vail ran to an eighth-place finish at the BMW Berlin Marathon this
year against a highly competitive field. A four time U.S. World Cross
Country team member, Vail's highest finish was 17th in 2013. He earned his
best marathon time of 2:10:57 with a tenth place at the 2014 London
Marathon.
Scott Smith ran the fourth fastest U.S. marathon time this year (2:12:21)
with his eighth-place finish in Frankfurt. He represented the U.S. at the
2012 IAAF Half Marathon Championships and the 2015 IAAF World Marathon
Championships.
Kellyn Taylor, the 2015 Pan American bronze medalist in the 5,000m, has run
four marathons with impressive results. At the 2015 Houston Marathon she
finished sixth, and followed that performance up with a sixth place at the
2016 U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials. This year she placed 13th at the Virgin
Money London Marathon and eighth at the New York City Marathon.
Andrew Bumbalough has represented the United States twice in cross country
and twice on the track in international championships. He won the USA 5K
National Championship in 2013, and placed fifth at the New York City Half
Marathon in 2015. He made his marathon debut in Tokyo this year, finishing
as the top American, and followed that up with a 13th place finish at the
Chicago Marathon.
The 2018 Boston Marathon marks the 33rd year of John Hancock's landmark
sponsorship of the legendary race. The complete elite international field
will be announced in a few weeks. For additional information about the
elite athlete program and sponsorship, please visit
www.johnhancock.com/bostonmarathon/sportspartnerships.html or follow us
@jhboston26 and @johnhancockUSA on Twitter.
2018 Boston Marathon John Hancock Elite USA Team
Deena Kastor 2:19:36 (London, 2006) @DeenaKastor
Jordan Hasay 2:20:57 (Chicago, 2017) @JordanHasay
Shalane Flanagan 2:21:14 (Berlin, 2014) @ShalaneFlanagan
Desiree Linden 2:22:38 (Boston, 2011) @des_linden
Serena Burla 2:26:53 (Osaka, 2017) @serena_burla
Sara Hall 2:27:21 (Frankfurt, 2017) @SaraHall3
Molly Huddle 2:28:13 (New York City, 2016) @MollyHuddle
Kellyn Taylor 2:28:40 (Houston, 2015) @kellyn_taylor
Dathan Ritzenhein 2:07:47 (Chicago, 2012) @djritzenhein
Abdi Abdirahman 2:08:56 (Chicago, 2006) @Abdi_runs
Galen Rupp 2:09:20 (Chicago, 2017) @G_Rupp
Ryan Vail 2:10:57 (London, 2014) @ryanvail
Shadrack Biwott 2:12:01 (New York, 2016) @skiptoob
Scott Smith 2:12:21 (Frankfurt, 2017) @scott_n_ready
Andrew Bumbalough 2:13:58 (Tokyo, 2017) @abumbalough
About John Hancock and Manulife
John Hancock is a division of Manulife Financial Corporation, a leading
international financial services group that helps people achieve their
dreams and aspirations by putting customers' needs first and providing the
right advice and solutions. We operate primarily as John Hancock in the
United States, and Manulife elsewhere. We provide financial advice,
insurance and wealth and asset management solutions for individuals, groups
and institutions. Assets under management and administration by Manulife
and its subsidiaries were over $1 trillion (US$806 billion) as of September
30, 2017. Manulife Financial Corporation trades as MFC on the TSX, NYSE,
and PSE, and under 945 on the SEHK. Manulife can be found at manulife.com.
One of the largest life insurers in the United States, John Hancock
supports approximately 10 million Americans with a broad range of financial
products, including life insurance, annuities, investments, 401(k) plans,
and college savings plans. We also offer advice through Signator, a
network of independent financial advisors. Additional information about
John Hancock may be found at johnhancock.com.
###
|
