Hug wins 8th Boston Marathon wheelchair title

BOSTON -- Marcel Hug of Switzerland blitzed to the beforehand of the tract to triumph his eighth Boston Marathon wheelchair title, claiming the triumph Monday successful the 129th variation of the contention successful 1 hour, 21 minutes, 34 seconds.

Susannah Scaroni of the United States won the women's wheelchair contention for the 2nd time, guaranteeing that the "Star-Spangled Banner" would play connected Boylston Street successful Copley Square connected Patriots' Day, the authorities vacation that commemorates the archetypal shots of the Revolutionary War 250 years agone Saturday.

The 39-year-old Hug crossed the decorativeness enactment successful downtown Boston to assertion his 5th consecutive triumph successful the contention connected the 50th day of the archetypal authoritative wheelchair finisher successful Boston. Daniel Romanchuk of the United States was 2nd successful 1:25:58, followed by Jetze Plat of the Netherlands successful 1:30:16.

"It means a batch to triumph this year, 50 years of wheelchairs successful Boston," Hug said. "For me, it volition instrumentality immoderate clip to recognize what it means, 8 times wins. It's specified an unthinkable number."

Hug and Romanchuk broke from the tract and stayed choky for astir six miles. But Hug opened astir a three-minute pb astatine the halfway people and began to widen his advantage.

Hug's latest triumph came connected a wide greeting with commencement temperatures successful the debased 50s. It made for a overmuch little eventful time for Hug, who past twelvemonth recovered from a clang successful the second portion of the contention connected his mode to victory.