As of now, the Boston Marathon is still on for Sept. 14. But media reports this week suggested the race is in jeopardy, given the still-raging global pandemic.
Should organizers cancel the marathon, the runners would not be the only disappointed ones. The nonprofits that rely on the marathon, many of them based in Greater Boston, would see yet another major source of fundraising knocked off the calendar because of coronavirus. A cancellation would likely have ripple effects for them into next year, as well.
The good news is that hundreds of charities have already raised a combined $27.2 million for this year’s race, according to the Boston Athletic Association. When the marathon was postponed in March, the event was only weeks away, meaning charity runners had already raised lots of money during their training. That fundraising has continued: Since April 20, the date the race was originally supposed to be run, charities have raised more than $1.7 million, according to John Hancock, the marathon’s primary sponsor.
