Short takes on this Marathon Monday . . .
Today marks 10 years and two days since the horrific Boston Marathon Bombing on April 15, 2013, an event that shook the city to its core.
At 2:49 on a cloudy, 48-degree Monday afternoon, while runners by the hundreds turned from Hereford Street to Boylston Street in the Back Bay, two homemade pressure cooker bombs exploded 14 seconds apart near the finish line.
Chaos ensued. A runner just yards from the finish sprawled in the middle of Boylston Street. Spectators, cheering moments before, lay on the sidewalk, dazed and bleeding. Glass from blown out windows littered the area. Emergency vehicles and medical personnel raced toward Copley Square.
For seven minutes runners picked their way through debris to cross the blue finish line painted on the black asphalt. Eventually, officials cordoned off 15 blocks around Copley Square and directed the 5,700 runners still on the course to Kenmore Square and Boston Common.
The nightmare was just beginning. Boston was locked down, residents urged to remain indoors. Logan International Airport was closed and airspace over the city restricted. A few hotels in the blast area closed.
Federal, state and local law enforcement officials arrived in force to hunt down the suspected bombers, eventually identified as brothers Tamerlan and Dzhokhar Tsarnaev. Three days later, after the brothers shot and killed MIT policeman Sean Collier, they engaged in a shootout with police in neighboring Watertown. Tamerlan was wounded and then run over by Dzhokhar as he escaped in a stolen vehicle. He died from those injuries. Later, Dzhokhar was cornered while hiding in a boat in a Watertown back yard. Police captured him there.
On April 8, 2015, one week shy of the two-year anniversary of the bombing, Dzhokhar Tsarnaev was found guilty of 30 charges in U.S. District Court in Boston. That June he was sentenced to death. In 2020 the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit overturned the death penalty, but the U.S. Supreme Court restored that death sentence in 2022. Last January Tsarnaev’s lawyers appealed the death sentence again, this time claiming the trial judge failed to allow them to challenge two jurors who, they said, lied during jury selection.
Dzhokhar Tsarnaev is currently imprisoned at the federal Supermax facility in Colorado.
On this milestone anniversary, we remember, even more thoughtfully than on previous anniversaries, the victims of the terrorist brothers. Martin Richard, an 8-year-old from Dorchester who was watching the marathon with his family. Krystie Campbell, 29, a restaurant manager from nearby Medford, Mass. And Lü Lingzi, a graduate student at Boston University.
We remember the 281 injured and the 24 requiring amputation — among them Heather Abbott of Newport. We remember how Boston came together in the days and weeks after the bombing. We remember the Red Sox at Fenway Park five days later, honoring the victims and first responders. We will always remember David Ortiz uttering a few words — “This is our f——-g city and nobody gonna dictate our freedom!” — that still resound 10 years and two days later.
The Rhode Island Connection
Rhode Island has contributed to the Boston Marathon’s colorful history. Les Pawson, a mill worker from Pawtucket, won three times: 1933 (2:31:01), 1938 (2:35:34) and 1941 (2:30:38), when he became the second three-time winner. Ellison M. “Tarzan” Brown, a Narragansett Indian from Westerly, won in 1936 (2:33:40) and 1939 (2:28:51).
Geoff Smith, a former firefighter from Liverpool, England, who ran for Providence College, finished first in 1984 (2:10:34) and 1985 (2:14:05).
Another Providence College runner, John Treacy from Ireland, finished third in 1988 (2:09:15). He had finished second (2:09:56) in the 1984 Olympics at Los Angeles.
Bobby Doyle from Pawtucket ran 12th (2:15:37) in Boston in 1978, seventh (2:14:03) in 1979 and fifth in 1985 (2:21:31).
Are the 2023 Bruins the best ever?
The Boston Bruins could be the best team in National Hockey League history. They dominated the ice from coast to coast this season, breaking NHL records for victories (65) and points (135) in a season. They erased the previous wins record of 62 shared by the 1996 Detroit Red Wings and the 2019 Tampa Bay Lightning. They broke the previous points record of 133 set by the Montreal Canadiens 1977 juggernaut.
Those ’77 Canadiens won the Stanley Cup, beating the Bruins in the Finals. That’s what the 2023 Bruins must do — win the Stanley Cup — to be considered the best ever for one season. The Bruins ended the regular season on a 9-1 tear. Only Edmonton (9-0-1) posted a slightly better record down the stretch.
Boston will open its Stanley Cup run Monday against the Florida Panthers.
The Celtics can win the NBA championship
The Boston Celtics begin their playoff journey this week. They finished with the second-best record in the NBA (57-25) — a game behind the Milwaukee Bucks — and their best record since 2008-2009. They have two of the best players in the game in Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown. They boast bench depth in Malcolm Brogdon, Sam Hauser and Payton Pritchard. Al Horford provides a veteran presence. Also, they have the experience of reaching Game 6 of the NBA Finals last season. Rookie head coach Joe Mazzulla from Johnston has led this team with a steady hand.
The Celtics have the talent to win the franchise’s 18th championship but must remain focused and healthy. The five-stitch cut on Brown’s shooting hand and Robert Williams III’s hamstring/knee problems could be troublesome.
Atlanta is the first playoff test with Philadelphia and Milwaukee likely to follow.
NCAA women drew a big crowd
Did you see that a record 9.9 million viewers watched the NCAA women’s basketball final between LSU and Iowa? The previous record was 5.7 million in 2002, when UConn defeated Oklahoma.
Pro golf tours will merge
LIV vs PGA Tour reminds me of the good old days when they AFL went head-to-head with the NFL and the ABA challenged the NBA. How did those rivalries work out? The AFL and NFL merged. The NBA absorbed most of the ABA. Here’s a prediction: PGA and LIV players co-existed during the Masters. They will merge within five years.
Global warming equals more home runs
New Hampshire Public Radio reported that researchers at Dartmouth College studied 100,000 baseball games from 1962 to 2019 and concluded that 1 percent of recent home runs can be attributed to global warming. Really? My baseball coach at Colby College many springs ago, Dr. John Winkin, would have devoured that report. He earned his doctorate with a dissertation on the double play.
Surfer Girl
Surfer Girl turns 60 in July. Unbelievable! If you are a Boomer, you will remember her standing by the ocean’s door. If you don’t know the Little Surfer Girl, look up the Beach Boys.
Mike Szostak can be reached at mszostak@ripr.org.
