BOSTON (AP) — Bob Hall and Bill Rodgers were teammates training for the 1975 Boston Marathon — Rodgers on his feet, and Hall in his wheelchair.
Rodgers would go on to win that year, the first of the four victories in his hometown race that earned him the nickname “Boston Billy” and set off a national running craze. But when he gave Hall’s wheelchair a try, he was outmatched.
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FILE - Daniel Romanchuk poses for photos after winning the men's wheelchair division of the New York City Marathon, Nov. 3, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II, File)
FILE - Tatyana McFadden of the U.S., celebrates before being informed she has been disqualified of the women's 400 m. T54 at the 2024 Paralympics, Sept. 5, 2024, in Paris. (AP Photo/Thomas Padilla, File)
FILE - Cheri Blauwet, co-chair of the Boston 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Movement Committee, addresses reporters during a news conference by organizers of Boston's campaign for the 2024 Summer Olympics in Boston, Jan. 21, 2015. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa, File)
FILE - Four-time Boston Marathon winner, Bill Rodgers, speaks, as Boston Marathon wheelchair winner and pioneer, Bob Hall, listens at left, during a news conference in Boston, April 15, 2005. (AP Photo/Elise Amendola, File)
“I tried to push myself in that chair. I couldn’t move,” Rodgers said this week. “But he had the eye of the tiger, Bob did.”
Fifty years later, the chairs are sleeker, the fields are bigger, and Hall’s successors are literally leading the way at the Boston Marathon: The push-rim wheelchair division will be the first to depart from Hopkinton on Monday morning, the better for them to avoid the much slower runners as the field makes its way to Boston’s Back Bay.
“Bob Hall is an incredible man,” five-time Boston winner and eight-time Paralympic gold medalist Tatyana McFadden said this week as she prepared for Monday's 129th edition of the race and 50th anniversary of Hall's pioneering push. “I’m so thankful for him. And I think we all are, as wheelchair racers, because he really paved the way.”
Vietnam veteran Eugene Roberts, who had lost both of his legs in the war, in 1970 became the first wheelchair athlete to complete the Boston Marathon course, finishing in a little over six hours. Hall talked his way into the field in ’75 race by promising race director Will Cloney he could do it in just three.
Hall, who survived childhood polio that cost him the use of his legs, covered the distance in 2 hours, 58 minutes. His prize: a certificate of achievement – just like the ones the runners got.
“It had nothing to do with, per se, the marathon, but it was about the inclusion,” said Hall, who is serving as the grand marshal of this year’s race with Rodgers on the 50th anniversary of their ’75 victories. “I didn’t care if anybody got on my coattails. It was that I was bringing people along.”
When he returned two years later, Hall led a field of seven men – and one woman – in a race that also served as the National Wheelchair Championships. On Monday, more than 40 men and women, many of them with paralympic and major marathon victories on their resumes, will leave Hopkinton ahead of a field of 30,000 runners, with the wheelchair winners expected on Boylston Street a mere 1 hour, 15 minutes or so later.
“Because of him crossing that finish line, we’re able to race today. And it’s evolved so much since then,” McFadden said. “It was him. It was him being brave and saying, ‘I’m going to go out and do this because I believe that we should be able to race Boston Marathon just like everyone else.’ So he had the courage to do that.”
McFadden didn't just follow Hall to the course: Her first racing chair, at the age of 7 or 8, was one of the youth-sized models that he designed and built for aspiring wheelchair athletes. Daniel Romanchuk, who has won Boston twice, and Marcel Hug, a seven-time winner and the defending champion, also got started on Bob Hall models.
“The chairs still hold up today,” McFadden said. “Eight-year-olds, 9-year-olds, are in that chair, and it’s still going strong. He’s also given back a lot too, in that way.”
The men's and women's wheelchair winners on Monday will claim top prizes of $50,000 from a purse of more than $250,000, with a possible $50,000 extra for a course record – the same bonus as the open divisions. There are also para divisions — with a total purse of $91,000 — for lower-limb, upper-limb, vision, coordination and intellectual impairment.
“Not because it’s a nice thing to do, but because these are elite athletes," said Cheri Blauwet, a paralympic gold medalist and two-time Boston winner who is now the chair of the Boston Athletic Association Board of Governors.
“And it’s important in terms of offering equitable elite sport opportunities to people of all types of mobility," she said. "But also, because it all comes back to our mission, which is to promote health through the sport of running and other sports opportunities.”
And it all started with Hall.
“We were leading edge at that time. And we’ve essentially maintained that philosophy for the for the subsequent decades," Blauwet said. “We’re always thinking about it. And, you know, we’re very competitive here — for obvious reasons. And we like to be competitive even in our progress towards inclusion.”
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FILE - Daniel Romanchuk poses for photos after winning the men's wheelchair division of the New York City Marathon, Nov. 3, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II, File)
FILE - Tatyana McFadden of the U.S., celebrates before being informed she has been disqualified of the women's 400 m. T54 at the 2024 Paralympics, Sept. 5, 2024, in Paris. (AP Photo/Thomas Padilla, File)
FILE - Cheri Blauwet, co-chair of the Boston 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Movement Committee, addresses reporters during a news conference by organizers of Boston's campaign for the 2024 Summer Olympics in Boston, Jan. 21, 2015. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa, File)
FILE - Four-time Boston Marathon winner, Bill Rodgers, speaks, as Boston Marathon wheelchair winner and pioneer, Bob Hall, listens at left, during a news conference in Boston, April 15, 2005. (AP Photo/Elise Amendola, File)
A group of Buddhist monks and their rescue dog are striding single file down country roads and highways across the South, captivating Americans nationwide and inspiring droves of locals to greet them along their route.
In their flowing saffron and ocher robes, the men are walking for peace. It's a meditative tradition more common in South Asian countries, and it's resonating now in the U.S., seemingly as a welcome respite from the conflict, trauma and politics dividing the nation.
Their journey began Oct. 26, 2025, at a Vietnamese Buddhist temple in Texas, and is scheduled to end in mid-February in Washington, D.C., where they will ask Congress to recognize Buddha’s day of birth and enlightenment as a federal holiday. Beyond promoting peace, their highest priority is connecting with people along the way.
“My hope is, when this walk ends, the people we met will continue practicing mindfulness and find peace,” said the Venerable Bhikkhu Pannakara, the group’s soft-spoken leader who is making the trek barefoot. He teaches about mindfulness, forgiveness and healing at every stop.
Preferring to sleep each night in tents pitched outdoors, the monks have been surprised to see their message transcend ideologies, drawing huge crowds into churchyards, city halls and town squares across six states. Documenting their journey on social media, they — and their dog, Aloka — have racked up millions of followers online. On Saturday, thousands thronged in Columbia, South Carolina, where the monks chanted on the steps of the State House and received a proclamation from the city's mayor, Daniel Rickenmann.
At their stop Thursday in Saluda, South Carolina, Audrie Pearce joined the crowd lining Main Street. She had driven four hours from her village of Little River, and teared up as Pannakara handed her a flower.
“There’s something traumatic and heart-wrenching happening in our country every day,” said Pearce, who describes herself as spiritual, but not religious. “I looked into their eyes and I saw peace. They’re putting their bodies through such physical torture and yet they radiate peace.”
Hailing from Theravada Buddhist monasteries across the globe, the 19 monks began their 2,300 mile (3,700 kilometer) trek at the Huong Dao Vipassana Bhavana Center in Fort Worth.
Their journey has not been without peril. On Nov. 19, as the monks were walking along U.S. Highway 90 near Dayton, Texas, their escort vehicle was hit by a distracted truck driver, injuring two monks. One of them lost his leg, reducing the group to 18.
This is Pannakara's first trek in the U.S., but he's walked across several South Asian countries, including a 112-day journey across India in 2022 where he first encountered Aloka, an Indian Pariah dog whose name means divine light in Sanskrit.
Then a stray, the dog followed him and other monks from Kolkata in eastern India all the way to the Nepal border. At one point, he fell critically ill and Pannakara scooped him up in his arms and cared for him until he recovered. Now, Aloka inspires him to keep going when he feels like giving up.
“I named him light because I want him to find the light of wisdom,” Pannakara said.
The monk's feet are now heavily bandaged because he's stepped on rocks, nails and glass along the way. His practice of mindfulness keeps him joyful despite the pain from these injuries, he said.
Still, traversing the southeast United States has presented unique challenges, and pounding pavement day after day has been brutal.
“In India, we can do shortcuts through paddy fields and farms, but we can’t do that here because there are a lot of private properties,” Pannakara said. “But what’s made it beautiful is how people have welcomed and hosted us in spite of not knowing who we are and what we believe.”
In Opelika, Alabama, the Rev. Patrick Hitchman-Craig hosted the monks on Christmas night at his United Methodist congregation.
He expected to see a small crowd, but about 1,000 people showed up, creating the feel of a block party. The monks seemed like the Magi, he said, appearing on Christ’s birthday.
“Anyone who is working for peace in the world in a way that is public and sacrificial is standing close to the heart of Jesus, whether or not they share our tradition,” said Hitchman-Craig. “I was blown away by the number of people and the diversity of who showed up.”
After their night on the church lawn, the monks arrived the next afternoon at the Collins Farm in Cusseta, Alabama. Judy Collins Allen, whose father and brother run the farm, said about 200 people came to meet the monks — the biggest gathering she’s ever witnessed there.
“There was a calm, warmth and sense of community among people who had not met each other before and that was so special,” she said.
Long Si Dong, a spokesperson for the Fort Worth temple, said the monks, when they arrive in Washington, plan to seek recognition of Vesak, the day which marks the birth and enlightenment of the Buddha, as a national holiday.
“Doing so would acknowledge Vesak as a day of reflection, compassion and unity for all people regardless of faith,” he said.
But Pannakara emphasized that their main goal is to help people achieve peace in their lives. The trek is also a separate endeavor from a $200 million campaign to build towering monuments on the temple’s 14-acre property to house the Buddha’s teachings engraved in stone, according to Dong.
The monks practice and teach Vipassana meditation, an ancient Indian technique taught by the Buddha himself as core for attaining enlightenment. It focuses on the mind-body connection — observing breath and physical sensations to understand reality, impermanence and suffering. Some of the monks, including Pannakara, walk barefoot to feel the ground directly and be present in the moment.
Pannakara has told the gathered crowds that they don't aim to convert people to Buddhism.
Brooke Schedneck, professor of religion at Rhodes College in Memphis, Tennessee, said the tradition of a peace walk in Theravada Buddhism began in the 1990s when the Venerable Maha Ghosananda, a Cambodian monk, led marches across war-torn areas riddled with landmines to foster national healing after civil war and genocide in his country.
“These walks really inspire people and inspire faith,” Schedneck said. “The core intention is to have others watch and be inspired, not so much through words, but through how they are willing to make this sacrifice by walking and being visible.”
On Thursday, Becki Gable drove nearly 400 miles (about 640 kilometers) from Cullman, Alabama, to catch up with them in Saluda. Raised Methodist, Gable said she wanted some release from the pain of losing her daughter and parents.
“I just felt in my heart that this would help me have peace,” she said. “Maybe I could move a little bit forward in my life.”
Gable says she has already taken one of Pannakara’s teachings to heart. She’s promised herself that each morning, as soon as she awakes, she’d take a piece of paper and write five words on it, just as the monk prescribed.
“Today is my peaceful day.”
Freelance photojournalist Allison Joyce contributed to this report.
Associated Press religion coverage receives support through the AP’s collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content.
Buddhist monks who are participating in the, "Walk For Peace," get lunch Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026, in Saluda, S.C. (AP Photo/Allison Joyce)
Aloka rests with Buddhist monks who are participating in the, "Walk For Peace," Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026, in Saluda, S.C. (AP Photo/Allison Joyce)
A sign is seen greeting the Buddhist monks who are participating in the, "Walk For Peace," Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026, in Saluda, S.C. (AP Photo/Allison Joyce)
Supporters pray with Buddhist monks who are participating in the, "Walk For Peace," Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026, in Saluda, S.C. (AP Photo/Allison Joyce)
Supporters watch Buddhist monks who are participating in the, "Walk For Peace," Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026, in Saluda, S.C. (AP Photo/Allison Joyce)
A Buddhist monk ties a prayer bracelet around the wrist of Josey Lee, 2-months-old, during the, "Walk For Peace," Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026, in Saluda, S.C. (AP Photo/Allison Joyce)
Bhikkhu Pannakara, a spiritual leader, speaks to supporters during the, "Walk For Peace," Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026, in Saluda, S.C. (AP Photo/Allison Joyce)
Buddhist monks participate in the, "Walk For Peace," Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026, in Saluda, S.C. (AP Photo/Allison Joyce)
Buddhist monks participate in the, "Walk For Peace," Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026, in Saluda, S.C. (AP Photo/Allison Joyce)
Bhikkhu Pannakara leads other buddhist monks in the, "Walk For Peace," Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026, in Saluda, S.C. (AP Photo/Allison Joyce)
Audrie Pearce greets Buddhist monks who are participating in the, "Walk For Peace," Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026, in Saluda, S.C. (AP Photo/Allison Joyce)
Bhikkhu Pannakara, a spiritual leader, speaks to supporters during the, "Walk For Peace," Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026, in Saluda, S.C. (AP Photo/Allison Joyce)
Buddhist monks who are participating in the, "Walk For Peace," arrive in Saluda, Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026, in Saluda, S.C. (AP Photo/Allison Joyce)
Buddhist monks who are participating in the, "Walk For Peace," are seen with their dog, Aloka, Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026, in Saluda, S.C. (AP Photo/Allison Joyce)
