page_title: List of winners of the Boston Marathon
section_title: Men's open division
hierarchical_section_title: List of winners of the Boston Marathon / Winners / Men's open division
caption_attribution_description: 1964 Wire Photo Belgian Boston Marathon Runner Winner Aurele Vendendriessche
context_page_description: The Boston Marathon, one of the six World Marathon Majors, is a 26.2-mile race which has been held in the Greater Boston area in Massachusetts since 1897. It is the oldest annual marathon in the world. The event is held on Patriots' Day, the third Monday of April. Various factors meant that until 1957 the course varied in length, due to which the marathon recognizes several course records that are slower than previous records due to being run on longer courses. The first Boston Marathon included only 15 runners, all of whom were men, and was won by John McDermott. The race was cancelled for the first time in its history in 2020, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The winners have represented 27 different countries: Americans have won the marathon the most, doing so on 108 occasions; Kenyans have won 34 times; and Canadians 21 times. Ernst van Dyk is the most successful individual athlete, having won the men's wheelchair division ten times. The current course records are held by Geoffrey Mutai, Buzunesh Deba, Marcel Hug and Manuela Schär.
  Clarence DeMar won the men's open race seven times, more than any other runner, achieving his first victory in 1911 and his last in 1930.
caption: Aurèle Vandendriessche won back-to-back marathons in 1963 and 1964.
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