Top scholastic athletes are announced for inaugural B.A.A Invitational Mile

Milers from eight cities and towns along Boston Marathon course will face off the day before Patriots’ Day

Boston, Mass. – Almost three dozen top scholastic milers will compete in the new B.A.A. Invitational Mile on April 19, the Boston Athletic Association announced today. The young athletes represent Hopkinton, Ashland, Framingham, Natick, Wellesley, Newton, Brookline and Boston – the eight cities and towns along the Boston Marathon course.

“We’re proud to give these talented athletes from our host communities the opportunity to compete in a race that concludes at the Boston Marathon finish line,” said Guy Morse, Executive Director of the Boston Athletic Association. “We won’t call it a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for them, however, because perhaps they will return one day as Boston Marathon champions.”

The Invitational Mile, to be held in conjunction with the debut of the B.A.A. 5K the day before the 113th Boston Marathon, will also feature separate mile races for professional men and women. Olympic bronze medalist Shalane Flanagan, who starred at Marblehead (MA) High School, will headline those fields.

Scholastic athletes set to compete include:

Hopkinton: Molly Kessler, Kelly Lodge, Dan Carrai and Stephen Lynch

Ashland: Hannah Daly, Sarah Poulin, Justin Davis, Brian Donoghue

Framingham: Sarah Bowhill, Maria Grandoni, Ben Groleau, Phineas McGovern

Natick: Caitlyn MacLellan, Rebecca White, Christopher Jamieson, Nick Zanchi

Wellesley: Alison Griswold, Sarah O’Brien, Billy Littlefield, Jeff Pini

Newton: Carolyn Ranti, Margo Gillis, Michael Goldenberg, Daniel Hamilton

Brookline: Suzy Wang, Dan Bohling, Ryan Hardiman

Boston: Elza Lambergs, Kathleen Mello, Omar Abdi, Ahmed Ali

The series of races in the B.A.A. Invitational Mile will begin with the girls’ scholastic race at 9:30 a.m. Sunday, April 19, immediately after the B.A.A. 5K, a new road race that will begin at 8 a.m. The boys’ scholastic race will begin at 9:45 a.m., followed by the professional miles.

Awards will be given to the top three boys and top three girls in the scholastic races, as well as to the top overall town. The races revive a long tradition for the Boston Athletic Association, which has offered scholastic races as far back as 1890, including the B.A.A. Schoolboy Games that began in the mid-1900s and ran through the early 1970s.

The mile will follow a three-loop course, beginning on Boylston Street, left on Dartmouth Street, left on Newbury Street, left on Exeter Street then left onto Boylston. Both the 5K and Mile will begin on Boylston Street near Copley Square Park, and end at the Boston Marathon finish line.

Additional information about the B.A.A. Invitational Mile, the B.A.A. 5K, the Boston Marathon and the Boston Athletic Association can be found online at www.baa.org.

Boston Athletic Association
Established in 1887, the Boston Athletic Association is a non-profit organization with a mission of managing athletic events and promoting a healthy lifestyle through sports, especially running. The B.A.A.'s Boston Marathon is the world's oldest annual marathon, and the organization manages other local events, including the B.A.A. Half Marathon presented by Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and the Jimmy Fund, and supports comprehensive charity, youth, and year-round running programs. Since 1986, the principal sponsor of the Boston Marathon has been John Hancock Financial.