Boston Marathon 2024: Where is Heartbreak Hill? Exploring the reason behind the name of the tournament's venue

The Boston Marathon 2024, which is the 128th edition of the event, is set to be held on Patriot's Day on April 15.

The 2024 field comprises prominent runners like two-time winner Evans Chebet, the Valencia Marathon 2023 winner Sisay Lemma, and the New York City Marathon 2021 champion Albert Korir in the men's open division.

In the women's open category, the Boston and New York Marathon winner in 2023, Hellen Obiri, two-time world champion Edna Kiplagat, and the former champion, Worknesh Defaga, are a few top athletes to watch out for.

However, the athletes will face a demanding challenge as they gear up for the 2024 edition of the oldest marathon in the world, considering the route being one of the difficult ones.

Regarded as one of the toughest marathon courses in the world, the Boston Marathon gives a serious challenge to the runners due to the Newton Hills. The last of the four Newton Hills, Heartbreak Hill is located between the 20th and 21st mile marks, which covers a distance of 0.4 miles uphill.

Despite its vertical rise of only 88 feet, what makes the Heartbreak Hill taxing is that it comes during the period when the runners are usually low on energy. Many marathoners describe the experience as "hitting the wall".

Why is the venue named the Heartbreak Hill?

Runners grab cups of water at the top of Heartbreak Hill April 16th, 2001 during the 105th Boston Marathon in Boston MA. (Photo by Darren McCollester/Newsmakers)

Heartbreak Hill got its name after a popular incident that took place during the Boston Marathon in 1936. Johnny Kelley, who won the 1935 edition recording a time of 2:32:07, gave Ellison Brown a pat on the shoulder as he overtook Brown along the route during the 1936 edition.

The gesture reportedly motivated Brown as he pushed himself harder and crossed the finish line to become the winner of the Boston Marathon 1936 in a time of 2:33:40, thus denying Kelley to defend his title.

Jerry Nason, a journalist representing The Boston Globe, reported on Tarzan Brown's victory with the headline "broke Kelley's heart" at the hill. This resulted in the hill being named Heartbreak Hill.

Know about Boston Marathon's route

The marathon route, which is 42.195 km, starts in Hopkinton in Middlesex County and then passes through multiple roads which include Route 135, Route 16, Route 30, and many city streets.

Additionally, the route then goes through the different cities and towns located in Massachusetts like Ashland, Framingham, Natick, Wellesley, Newton, and Brookline. It then continues through Boston before terminating at Boylston Street near Copley Square.