Do People Who “Virtually” Run the Boston Marathon Really Deserve Its Iconic Medal?

A usually-unified running community is split on the topic

boston finisher medal
The iconic Unicorn finisher's medal.
Maddie Meyer / Staff

The Boston Athletic Association, the governing body in charge of the Boston Marathon, announced a decision last week that has the usually-unified running community in a social media quarrel. BAA plans to hold a virtual fall marathon in addition to the usual race; up to 70,000 people aged 18 or older will be considered finishers of the marathon this year, so long as they sign up on time, pay a fee, and run (or walk) 26.2 miles.

The key word there is “finishers.” Because the BAA plans to officially recognize the efforts of its virtual participants, it will be awarding them the race’s iconic Unicorn finisher’s medals. If you know or care about running, you’ve probably seen the logo before, outlined in sky blue and athletic gold. While Boston did hold a virtual race last year, it didn’t hand out medals. This is a first-of-its-kind move, and it has some people upset.

boston marathon runners
Runners on Boylston Street’s final straight in 2019.
MediaNews Group/Boston Herald via Getty Images/Contributor

Boston is such an important marathon to the running world that “BQ” is a well-established shorthand, for “Boston Qualifying time.” Each year, 80% of the race’s 31,000-plus runners are time qualifiers. Of the planet’s six major marathons, this is the one you really have to earn to get into. It’s why runners bookmark the marathon’s website each year and check whether the qualifying times have been dropped another five minutes (over recent years, the answer is usually yes). That’s why they seek out obscure, downhill marathons like Mountains 2 Beach in Central California, which pitches itself as “Your SoCal BQ!”

Even if you do run a quick time — for anyone 18 to 49, that means 3:20 or better — you’re still subject to a lottery system of sorts. People who go well under the required BQ are locks, but thousands on the cusp may be denied entry. And all that stress comes before you even have the opportunity to run 26.2 miles around the Greater Boston area.

The traditional, non-virtual Boston Marathon is also currently on for this fall, but nobody really knows what that means yet. Will it run at full capacity? Even with an effective vaccine response, and a successful summer in fighting the pandemic, that seems unlikely. All we know for sure is that the BAA intends to keep its 80:20 ratio of qualifiers to “normal” runners (those running for charities and causes).

It’s important to remember here that that latter group — and all the spectators and supporters they bring to Boylston Street — is a big reason why the race, now in its 125th iteration, raises over $30 million every single year. If you’ve been to a marathon, in Boston, London, or Tokyo, you’ve likely seen that these events go well beyond the talent and drive of the men and women leading the pack. They’re feel-good, do-good events for everyone involved.

So, do virtual runners deserve a medal? That depends on how much you care about a medal. Many Boston finishers have pointed out they don’t even know where their medals are. There is a point to be made, also, that this “virtual race” trend might now continue into 2022 and beyond — that could alter our understanding of what a marathon should look like. Can you say you’ve run all the world’s marathons if, over the years, you sign up for each and just run a 26.2 mile loop around your town in Pennsylvania?

Some disgruntled runners have also pointed out this might be a cash grab by the athletic bodies that operate these events. Maybe. If one thing is clear, we’re all sick of 12 straight months of things we hold dear needing to change on account of this virus. Frankly, we’ll all deserve a medal for getting through this thing. Come October, who cares if it’s got a unicorn on it?

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