Among the notable professional athletes who have achieved or are striving for the Abbott World Marathon Majors Six Star Medal include (from left to right, clockwise) Sara Hall, Shalane Flanagan, Edna Kiplagat, Manuela Schär, Madison de Rozario, and Tatyana McFadden. A total of 155 fnishers earned their Six Star Medal at Boston last year.
The star-studded list of women who own a Six Star Medal does not end there. Tatyana McFadden collected hers in 2018 to burnish a Majors career that boasts 23 victories and a track resume featuring 20 Paralympic medals.
Her great rival and current AbbottWMM women's wheelchair champion Manuela Schär also has the full set and, in 2019, completed the unique feat of winning every race in a single series, for which she received a special gold Six Star Medal.
Australian superstar Madison de Rozario is uniquely placed among the female wheelchair athletes, with not only all six under her belt, but also Paralympic gold in the marathon after her narrow victory over Schär in Tokyo 2020.
There are some big names homing in on Six Star glory too.
In 2021, Shalane Flanagan famously made her way through all five Majors in six weeks, adding a home-spun 26.2-mile effort in place of the postponed Tokyo
Marathon. Flanagan now just has the in-person Tokyo race left to ensure there is a Six Star medal among her collection. Her fellow American Deena Kastor is also just one race away, needing Berlin to complete the set.
While the pandemic may have interrupted many athletes' Six Star missions, thousands will resume their quest on April 18 in what promises to be a special landmark for women's marathon running.
- Average Six Star Finisher time: 4:03
- 2021 Six Star Finishers in Boston: 155