Boston Marathon 2012 Results: Men and Women's Top Finishers

Monday, April 16, 2012 is Patriot’s Day in Boston, Mass., but it is also the date of the annual Boston Marathon.

The Boston Marathon is one of the premiere events in all of running, but Mother Nature will play into how the day unfolds this year. With temperatures in the high 80s, there are serious concerns about the health of the participants.

Despite the adverse conditions, the world’s top marathon runners will set their sights on accomplishing what is a lifetime-goal for many of the participants.

Keep it here for all of your Boston Marathon updates and final finishers when all is said and done.

UPDATE: Monday, April 16, 1:00 p.m. ET by Donald Wood

With one of the hottest days in the event’s history, the 116th Boston Marathon went off as well as could have been expected. Wesley Korir and Sharon Cherop, a pair of Kenyan runners took the prizes for fastest male and female with respective time of 2:12:40 and 2:31:50.

Top 5 Men's Results

1	Korir, Wesley	2:12:40	KEN
2	Matebo, Levy	2:13:06	KEN
3	Kipyego, Bernard	2:13:13	KEN
4	Hartmann, Jason	2:14:31	USA
5	Chebet, Wilson	2:14:56	KEN

Top 5 Women's Results

1	Cherop, Sharon	2:31:50	KEN
2	Sumgong, Jemima Jelagat	2:31:52	KEN
3	Rono, Georgina	2:33:09	KEN
4	Dado, Firehiwot	2:34:56	ETH
5	Sigei, Diana	2:35:40	KEN

There are still many runners still going for it, especially as the heat has formed the majority of the runners to slow their pace. The BAA is expecting to keep the finish line open an extra hour to compensate for the toughness the heat adds to the marathon.

Weather

Monday’s Marathon has a start time of 9:00 a.m. ET, but it was the expected temperature of 77 degrees at the gun that will make finishing the race such a chore.

While every runner that started the event will be testing their level of endurance and conditioning, the added heat will be too much for many of the less experienced runners to overcome.

Boston Athletic Association’s co-medical director Pierre D'Hemecourt told Reuters about the heat wave hitting the east coast and which runners should not be participating:

"

If the temperatures reach certain levels, running will put even the most fit athletes at risk for heat injury…If you have underlying medical problems, such as cardiac disease or respiratory disease, think about not running. If you have a cough or cold, or had recent gastro-enteritis, don't run…This is not the day to be running your personal best.

"

The event organizers realize just how deadly this situation could be without the right precautions and they will make sure they have every runner’s complete commitment to health over finishing the race.

Let's hope everything goes off without a hitch, and the Boston Marathon ends on the happy note that it always should. Add another chapter to the storied history.

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