Eliud Kipchoge, the world’s greatest marathoner, is running his first Boston Marathon, and the women’s field is full of champions. The finish line was rededicated to the victims of the 2013 bombing.
Solemn remembrances and acts of service on the bombing’s anniversary.
The weekend before the Boston Marathon feels like a party, with runners, tourists and residents thronging to the blocks around the finish line to shop, snap selfies with their yellow race bibs and celebrate one of the city’s most joyous occasions.
But the crowds on Boylston Street fell silent at 2:49 p.m. Saturday, as the bell at the historic Old South Church rang to commemorate the moment when two bombs exploded on the street below during the 2013 marathon, killing three people, injuring more than 250 and stunning the city, the running community and the world.
Azadeh Smeltzer, 62, a Philadelphian who planned to run her fourth Boston Marathon and 136th marathon overall on Monday, was among those who paused to listen near a stone memorial to the victims, surrounded by tulips and daffodils.
“People went through such heartache here, amazing people, and they came together and recovered,” she said. “I wanted to be here this year to feel that, to be a part of it, and to give it back.”
Chirping birds and the hum of distant traffic were the only other sounds as the church bell tolled during a short, solemn ceremony in observance of the 10-year anniversary of the bombing.
