40 Athletes to Represent Treasure Valley at 2019 Boston Marathon

The countdown to Patriots Day 2019 is on and 40 Treasure Valley runners are getting their chance to live out their dreams at the most prestigious marathon in the country!

Held on the third Monday of April since 1897, the Boston Marathon is also the oldest annual marathon in the world.  To qualify, runners must reach a qualifying standard through running a marathon between mid-September and when registration opens for the race.  The standards are tough and by achieving one, you're still not guaranteed a spot on the starting line at Boston.  If more runners submit themselves for consideration than there are spots available, the entries are given to the fastest athletes in each age or gender group.

The field normally attracts more than 30,000 runners from all over the world, so for these 40 Idahoans to be there is a huge deal.

I'm particularly interested in watching the women's elite field to see if Des Linden can repeat the inspiring performance she gave in the 2018.  Despite abnormally cold and wet conditions last year, Linden went on to become the first American woman to win Boston in 33 years after considering dropping out of the race.

She'll face steep competition from Edna Kiplagat, who won the race in better conditions in 2017. Jordan Hasay is another American who could take a run at the title.  She was scheduled to race last year, but had to withdraw due to injury.  Hasay actually has a kind of cool Treasure Valley connection.  She finished 4th in the 3000M run when the NCAA National Indoor Track and Field Championships were held at the Jackson's Track Center in Nampa in 2012.

The following 40 Treasure Valley runners will tow the same start line with Hasay, Linden and Kiplagat on Monday, April 15. Their bib numbers are included in case you know anybody and would like to track their progress through the official Boston Marathon App!

Boise (28)

• Elizabeth Bates 14017
• Joslyn Bernhardt 16631
• Eric Bjorkman 9259
• Kyle Brush 586
• Courtney Busse 22597
• Bryana Carey 27696
• Rachelle Christensen 10574
• Ryan Compagnone 2990
• Denise Davis 20344
• Sara Fry 6010
• Maddie Gerton 17301
• Austin Hopkins 5092
• Angela Horrocks 20919
• Akheil Jain 1886
• Amber Kirtley-Perez 28194
• Shelanda Kujala 15272
• Joel Martindale 3240
• Connie McMurray 22115
• Raymond Mullenax 12959
• Eric Nelson 12754
• Zeb Perez 1746
• Megan Rebholtz 10298
• Brett Ruff 4287
• Beau Seegmiller 1492
• Jodine Steemers 11225
• Erik Teig 189
• Tyson Watson 1269

Caldwell (1)

• Katherine Ball 13060

Eagle (2)

• Louis Buhrley 14464
• Carolyn Olsen 14069

Kuna (1)

• Makenzie Patten 13242

Meridian (6)

• Kaidree Christensen 29864
• Brenda Fick 24031
• Natalie Hammond 17913
• Andrea Payne 20293
• Rachael Powell 8428
• Blake Taylor 3604

Nampa (2)

• Benjamin Gall 7639
• Jeff Mutchie 4706