Delmace Mayo's Boston Marathon debut was worth the wait
Competing in the men's championship wheelchair division of the Boston Marathon, Mayo crossed the line in 2:04:30, finishing 21st in the 26-racer field. Mayo blazed out of the gates to a 3:26-minute mile pace over his opening 5000 meters, and averaged a 4:44-minute mile.
'I was nervous going into it, but I ended up realizing pretty early on that the hills that were supposed to give everyone trouble weren't going to give me trouble,' Mayo said. 'It helped that I've done hill work before. And Heartbreak Hill, honestly, was not even a hill for me.'
2025 Boston Marathon: Teen track phenom Delmace Mayo to race in wheelchair division
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Local track phenom Delmace Mayo is set to race in the Boston Marathon. His journey to this race started a long time ago in his native Haiti.
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Mayo was born in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, with a rare spinal cord injury that caused paralysis in his lower limbs and made him unable to stand or walk.
Mayo has cemented himself as one of the nation's top youth para athletes in recent years, taking home multiple gold medals each of the past three years at the Move United Junior Nationals. He also competes on Brighton High School's track team, where he is a captain and has won multiple state and national titles.
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But despite Mayo's decorated career and extensive racing experience, nothing quite prepared him for the grueling rigor of a marathon.
Adversity struck for Mayo entering Newton at roughly the 16-mile mark, when a blister formed on his thumb. But Mayo stuck to advice given to him by Bob Hall,
'Bob Hall, he said to me, 'the crowd won't let you give up. No matter what happens, they won't let you give up,' Mayo said. 'I was pushing with one hand for like a half mile, because I didn't want the blister to pop. But I knew the crowd would stay with me.'
In December, Mayo committed to the University of Arizona, the top para athlete collegiate program in the country. His ultimate goal is to compete in the 2028 paralympics, and his effort on Monday was a significant step in his racing journey.
'Finishing my first marathon at home, getting to do it here, it's just the best feeling,' Mayo said.
Matty Wasserman can be reached at
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