AMERICUS, Ga. (WALB) - The prestigious Boston Marathon was held this past week, and one Americus man achieved his dream of participating in the race.

When Jake Griffith started running back in 2020, he had no idea what he was capable of. He says he could barely run a single mile without stopping.

He started training with a goal of just completing a marathon. To him, qualifying for the Boston Marathon was a pipe dream. But in 2024, Griffith entered the Albany Combo’s Marathon and finished with a time that earned him a spot in Boston.

“It was amazing. The city, it was great. The people of Boston just embrace the runners so much and they just give us a lot of love and lots of cheering. It was just an incredible experience,” said Griffith.

Jake Griffith ran in Boston while his parents, siblings, and wife cheered him on the entire time. He knew he had support from fans in Boston but had no idea that those back in his hometown were all rooting for him.

“Coming back home, I didn’t realize how many people were, you know, tracking me and even knew I was running Boston. Since I got back, people have been congratulating me and letting me know they were watching. So, that really meant a lot. I had no idea people were that interested in it,” continued Griffith.

Griffith says he has goals to run the six major marathons, all with finishing times under 3 hours. He encourages anyone who wants to get into running to just go for it. He tells WALB that “starting is the hardest part of all.”

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