Defending Champions, American Stars Lead Field for 2025 Boston Half presented by Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and the Jimmy Fund
New England’s signature half marathon will be held November 9 starting and finishing at Franklin Park
BOSTON – The Boston Athletic Association (B.A.A.) has announced the professional field for the upcoming 2025 Boston Half presented by Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and the Jimmy Fund, led by defending open division champions Yemane Haileselassie (Eritrea) and Fantaye Belayneh (Ethiopia), as well as 2024 wheelchair division winners Daniel Romanchuk (USA) and Michelle Wheeler (USA). Team USA Olympic marathoner Clayton Young and former American record holder Keira D’Amato will also compete, racing the 13.1-mile route along the Emerald Necklace Park System.
“More than 70 of the world’s most accomplished athletes from 13 countries will line up to compete as part of the professional field on the roads of Boston, leading the way for 9,000 participants,” said Jack Fleming, B.A.A. President and CEO. “We are delighted to welcome back athletes who’ve won each of our events before – the Boston 5K, 10K, Half, and Boston Marathon – as well as Olympians and Paralympians. Whether participating, volunteering, or spectating and cheering, the 2025 Boston Half presented by Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and the Jimmy Fund will be a memorable race day.”
Though Haileselassie won by 15 seconds a year ago, he expects a close contest this year. Young – ninth at both the 2024 Paris Olympic Marathon and 2025 World Athletics Championships Marathon – took seventh at April’s Boston Marathon presented by Bank of America. He will race his first Boston Half and enters with a 1:00:52 lifetime best. Kenya’s Isaia Lasoi is fastest in the field (58:10 personal best) followed closely by countryman Alex Nzioka Matata (59:20).
Beyond Haileselassie, two top ten finishers from 2024 return: Olympian Thomas Fafard (Canada, seventh in 1:02:17) and B.A.A. High Performance Team member Barry Keane (Ireland, ninth in 1:02:35) have strong experience on the undulating course. Elkanah Kibet, a four-time representative of Team USA at the World Championships Marathon, returns to Boston with a fifth-place finish from 2010 on his resume. Sam Chelanga, third place in 2012 and fourth in 2013, has also run well here. B.A.A. High Performance Team member James Mwaura will make his debut.
The women’s professional field features many familiar faces on Boston podiums. In addition to Belayneh (2024 Boston Half), Ethiopia’s Melknat Wudu (2024 Boston 10K), American D’Amato (2022 Boston 10K), and Kenya’s Monicah Ngige (2019 Boston 10K) have all taken home wins at B.A.A. events. Knocking on the door are Mercy Chelangat (Kenya) and Daisy Jepkemei (Kazakhstan), seventh and eighth, respectively, a year ago in 1:10:32 and 1:10:43. Kenyans Evaline Chirchir (1:06:01) and Grace Loibach (1:06:31) enter with the fastest lifetime bests; Loibach was runner-up at April’s Boston 5K.
B.A.A. High Performance Team member Megan Sailor was the top American in 2024 (tenth, 1:11:27) and will have home course advantage. World Championships Marathon team member Erika Kemp, 2:23:31 marathoner Lindsay Flanagan, and 2023 NCAA 10,000m champion Everlyn Kemboi also are among the top American entrants.
Two-time Boston Marathon Wheelchair Division winner Daniel Romanchuk aims to earn his third Boston Half win. He set the course record of 47:38 last year and will go up against 2023 winner Hermin Garic.
Michelle Wheeler broke the tape first in 1:00:25 last year to secure her first Boston Half wheelchair victory and now aims to become the fifth repeat winner in division history. The entire top four from 2024 – Wheeler, Yen Hoang, Hannah Babalola, and Chelsea Stein—return for a rematch.
In the Para Athletics Division, four winners from the 2024 Boston Half will defend their crowns: Marko Cheseto Lemtukei (T42-T44/T61-T64 lower-limb impairment), Atsbha Gebremeskel (T45-T47 upper-limb impairment), Kelly Bruno (T42-T44/T61-T64 lower-limb impairment), and Cristina Burbach (T35-T38 coordination impairment). Joining them on the start line is world record holder Brian Reynolds (T42-T44/T61-T64 lower-limb impairment), a Massachusetts native.
A complete field list can be found below, and will be updated through race day on baa.org.
Nearly 9,000 athletes are expected to cross the start line, with citizens of 97 countries and residents of 45 U.S. states plus Washington, D.C. signed up. A total of 7,386 Massachusetts residents are entered. The event features athletes of all ages and abilities; the youngest entrant is 14 years old, while the oldest entrant is 82 years old.
Free youth events will be offered on race morning within Franklin Park, including races and medals for all.
The updated Boston Half course runs along the picturesque Emerald Necklace Park System, past landmarks such as the Arnold Arboretum, Jamaica Pond, and Franklin Park Zoo, before finishing on Pierpont Road in Franklin Park. The Boston Half is a family-friendly event for athletes and spectators of all ages.
Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and the Jimmy Fund has partnered with the Boston Half since 2003 as the race’s presenting sponsor and exclusive charity team. Through this relationship, Dana-Farber runners have collectively raised more than $10 million to support groundbreaking cancer research, and enabled Dana-Farber scientists and clinicians to positively impact the lives of cancer patients around the world. More than 600 Team Dana-Farber athletes have raised funds for this year’s race.
PROFESSIONAL OPEN WOMEN’S FIELD
NAME | COUNTRY | PERSONAL BEST |
Evaline Chirchir | KEN | 1:06:01 (Ras Al Khaimah, 2020) |
Grace Loibach | KEN | 1:06:31 (Meishan, 2025) |
Keira D'Amato | USA | 1:06:39 (Gold Coast, 2023) |
Gladys Kwamboka Mong'are | KEN | 1:07:16 (Yangzhou, 2025) |
Monicah Ngige | KEN | 1:07:29 (Houston, 2019) |
Fantaye Belayneh | ETH | 1:07:31 (Lisbon, 2024) |
Daisy Jepkemei | KAZ | 1:07:54 (Lyon, 2024) |
Mercy Chelangat | KEN | 1:08:57 (Houston, 2024) |
Haftamnesh Tesfay Haylu | ETH | 1:09:02 (Rome, 2018) |
Erika Kemp | USA | 1:09:10, Houston, 2024) |
Lindsay Flanagan | USA | 1:09:17 (Houston, 2025) |
Everlyn Kemboi | USA | 1:10:06 (Pittsburgh, 2025) |
Megan Sailor | USA | 1:10:13 (Houston, 2025) |
Melknat Wudu | ETH | 1:10:30 (Boston, 2024) |
Dani Polereky | USA | 1:11:08 (Houston, 2025) |
Jessa Hanson | USA | 1:11:26 (Fort Worth, 2023) |
Rachel Smith | USA | 1:12:36 (Boston, 2023) |
Annabel Stafford | USA | 1:14:35 (Boston, 2024) |
Mercy Cherono | KEN | 1:15:47 (Sosiot, 2025) |
Courtney Hawkins | USA | Debut |
Daisy Liljegren | USA | Debut |
Angelia Norstrom | USA | Debut |
PROFESSIONAL OPEN MEN’S FIELD
NAME | COUNTRY | PERSONAL BEST |
Isaia Lasoi | KEN | 58:10 (Copenhagen, 2024) |
Alex Nzioka Matata | KEN | 59:20 (RAK, 2025) |
Sam Chelanga | USA | 1:00:37 (Houston, 2018) |
Dennis Kitiyo | KEN | 1:00:47 (Valencia, 2024) |
Clayton Young | USA | 1:00:52 (Houston, 2025) |
Barry Keane | IRL | 1:01:22 (Houston, 2025) |
Yemane Haileselassie | ERI | 1:01:34 (Houston, 2024) |
Thomas Fafard | CAN | 1:02:17 (Boston, 2024) |
Santiago Catrofe | URU | 1:02:20 (Valencia, 2024) |
Chandler Gibbens | USA | 1:02:25 (Indianapolis, 2024) |
Mohamed El Ghazouany | MOR | 1:02:25 (Marrakech, 2024) |
Elkanah Kibet | USA | 1:02:29 (Houston, 2018) |
Tristan Woodfine | CAN | 1:02:40 (Boston 2023) |
Murphy Smith | USA | 1:02:50 (Duluth, 2025) |
Jacob Shiohira | USA | 1:03:19 (Ageo, 2024) |
Erik Linden | USA | 1:04:09 (Houston, 2024) |
Jonathan Phillips | USA | 1:04:14 (Houston, 2020) |
Brian Harvey | USA | 1:04:44 (Houston , 2015) |
Hector Pagan | PUR | 1:04:47 (Houston, 2025) |
Dylan Alick | CAN | 1:05:23 (Congers, 2025) |
Josh Kalapos | USA | 1:05:46 (New Bedford, 2023) |
Paul Arredondo | USA | 1:05:49 (Wilmington, 2024) |
Medhane Woldu | USA | 1:06:23 (Long Beach, 2024) |
Michael Durkin | USA | 1:07:00 (New Bedford, 2024) |
Philip White | USA | 1:07:01 (Toronto, 2024) |
Ryan Gallagher | USA | 1:07:28 (Hartford, 2025) |
Nicholas Bannon | CAN | Debut |
Luke Henseler | USA | Debut |
Neil Ibata | FRA | Debut |
Andrea Kiptoo | KEN | Debut |
Jack McMahon | USA | Debut |
James Mwaura | USA | Debut |
Alec Troxell | USA | Debut |
PARA ATHLETICS DIVISION FIELD
MEN | COUNTRY | CLASSIFICATION |
Thomas Cantara | USA | T20 |
Atsbha Gebremeskel | ETH | T45-47 |
Marko Cheseto | USA | T61-64 |
Brian Reynolds | USA | T61-64 |
| | |
WOMEN | COUNTRY | CLASSIFICATION |
Cristina Burbach | USA | T36 |
Kelly Bruno | USA | T61-64 |
WHEELCHAIR DIVISION FIELD
MEN | COUNTRY | CLASSIFICATION |
Jacob Allen | USA | T53/54 |
Delmace Mayo | USA | T53/54 |
Miguel Jimenez Vergara | USA | T53/54 |
Dustin Stallberg | USA | T53/54 |
Wyatt Willand | USA | T53/54 |
Aidan Gravelle | USA | T53/54 |
Daniel Romanchuk | USA | T53/54 |
Hermin Garic | USA | T53/54 |
| | |
WOMEN | COUNTRY | CLASSIFICATION |
Chelsea Stein | USA | T53/54 |
Hannah Babalola | NGR | T53/54 |
Michelle Wheeler | USA | T53/54 |
Yen Hoang | USA | T53/54 |
Linden Williamson | USA | T53/54 |
