Sports
San Diegan Wins 2014 Boston Marathon
Meb Keflezighi, a San Diego High School graduate and Olympic medalist, was the first American to win the race since 1983.
A San Diego man won the Boston Marathon today in just over two hours, making him the first American to win the race since 1983.
Meb Keflezighi won the 118th Boston Marathon with an official time of 2 hours, 8 minutes and 37 seconds, according to the Boston Athletic Association.
The almost 39-year-old was among nearly 36,000 runners to competed in today's marathon, one year since three people were killed and 264 were injured when two brothers set off homemade explosives at the finish line.
As Keflezighi approached the finish line roughly 10 seconds ahead of second place finisher Wilson Chebet of Kenya, he could be seen pumping his fist as the crowd cheered him on.
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Councilman David Alvarez tweeted, "Thrilled and proud that my friend @runmeb has won the Boston Marathon!"
"Boston strong meet San Diego strong," U-T San Diego tweeted, referring to the slogan adopted following last year's attack.
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Keflezighi and his family immigrated to the United States as refugees from Eritrea when he was only 12 years old. He attended Roosevelt Middle School and San Diego High School, where he ran track and won both the 1600 meters and 3200 meters at the CIF California State Championships in 1994.
He also won a silver medal in the 2004 Olympics marathon.
—City News Service
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