The winner of the non-binary category of the 2025 Boston Marathon earlier this week has enjoyed plenty of success in men's races in recent years..Whit Blair (2:22.47) won the non-binary category on Monday with a performance that would've been good for 60th place on the men's side, according to the race's results.A total of 70 runners competed in the non-binary category; Blair beat the non-binary runner-up by nearly five minutes. However, Blair has competed in the male category in other races -- and excelled.Last month, Blair (1:10:56) won the Canyonlands Half Marathon (13.1 miles) in Moab, Utah. The results list Blair as a male competitor.Blair (5:01:36) also won the male category at the Grand Mesa Ultras 55-kilometer (34.17 miles) race in Colorado in June 2023.Ultra Running Magazine also lists three other races where Blair competed in the men's category in 2023 and 2024. Blair finished in the top-10 on the men's side in all of them.Yet, the Boston Marathon isn't Blair's first time competing in the non-binary category. The runner won (3:33:53) the non-binary category during the 50-kilometer (31.06 miles) Austin Rattler Run in Texas in November 2024. However, Blair was the lone competitor in the Gender X division in that race.XX-XY Athletics founder Jennifer Sey commented on Blair's Boston Marathon victory. She said the marathon should have two gender categories: male and female -- and that males don't belong in the women's category."He is a man and should compete in men’s," she posted on X. "They essentially have two men’s categories: men’s and non-binary. And even men can compete in women’s. What category is for women only? None."2008 Olympic marathoner Mara Yamauchi added that it's no surprise Blair won the non-binary category at the Boston Marathon."1st Whit Blair - v good male ultra runner…," she posted on X. "As in previous races, the NB category is dominated by men bc it is a mixed sex category. #sexnotgender."The Boston Marathon has had a non-binary runner category since 2023.Winners of the men's and women's categories of the Boston Marathon receive $150,000 each. However, winners of the non-binary category don't receive prize money, a spokesman for the Boston Athletic Association told NewBostonPost in September 2022."The Boston Marathon's professional division rules and protocols are established by our sport's governing bodies: World Athletics, USA Track & Field, and World Para Athletics," the spokesman wrote. "To receive prize money at the Boston Marathon, athletes must be invited to start and compete amongst one of the professional divisions (Professional Men, Professional Women, Wheelchair, or Para Athletics Division) based on previous athletic accomplishments and/or qualifying time. As governed by World Athletics, USA Track & Field, and World Para Athletics, to receive prize money and compete among the professional divisions one must designate their gender as male or female."The spokesman continued: "Non-binary athletes who may be eligible for invitational entry into the professional fields would need to designate their gender based on World Athletics, USA Track & Field, or World Para Athletics rules prior to competing for prize money."The Boston Marathon's website doesn't list non-binary as a prize-eligible category for the 2025 race.The 2025 Boston Marathon took place on April 21, 2025. The annual 26.2-mile race starts in Hopkinton, Massachusetts; the finish line is on Boylston Street in Boston.
The winner of the non-binary category of the 2025 Boston Marathon earlier this week has enjoyed plenty of success in men's races in recent years..Whit Blair (2:22.47) won the non-binary category on Monday with a performance that would've been good for 60th place on the men's side, according to the race's results.A total of 70 runners competed in the non-binary category; Blair beat the non-binary runner-up by nearly five minutes. However, Blair has competed in the male category in other races -- and excelled.Last month, Blair (1:10:56) won the Canyonlands Half Marathon (13.1 miles) in Moab, Utah. The results list Blair as a male competitor.Blair (5:01:36) also won the male category at the Grand Mesa Ultras 55-kilometer (34.17 miles) race in Colorado in June 2023.Ultra Running Magazine also lists three other races where Blair competed in the men's category in 2023 and 2024. Blair finished in the top-10 on the men's side in all of them.Yet, the Boston Marathon isn't Blair's first time competing in the non-binary category. The runner won (3:33:53) the non-binary category during the 50-kilometer (31.06 miles) Austin Rattler Run in Texas in November 2024. However, Blair was the lone competitor in the Gender X division in that race.XX-XY Athletics founder Jennifer Sey commented on Blair's Boston Marathon victory. She said the marathon should have two gender categories: male and female -- and that males don't belong in the women's category."He is a man and should compete in men’s," she posted on X. "They essentially have two men’s categories: men’s and non-binary. And even men can compete in women’s. What category is for women only? None."2008 Olympic marathoner Mara Yamauchi added that it's no surprise Blair won the non-binary category at the Boston Marathon."1st Whit Blair - v good male ultra runner…," she posted on X. "As in previous races, the NB category is dominated by men bc it is a mixed sex category. #sexnotgender."The Boston Marathon has had a non-binary runner category since 2023.Winners of the men's and women's categories of the Boston Marathon receive $150,000 each. However, winners of the non-binary category don't receive prize money, a spokesman for the Boston Athletic Association told NewBostonPost in September 2022."The Boston Marathon's professional division rules and protocols are established by our sport's governing bodies: World Athletics, USA Track & Field, and World Para Athletics," the spokesman wrote. "To receive prize money at the Boston Marathon, athletes must be invited to start and compete amongst one of the professional divisions (Professional Men, Professional Women, Wheelchair, or Para Athletics Division) based on previous athletic accomplishments and/or qualifying time. As governed by World Athletics, USA Track & Field, and World Para Athletics, to receive prize money and compete among the professional divisions one must designate their gender as male or female."The spokesman continued: "Non-binary athletes who may be eligible for invitational entry into the professional fields would need to designate their gender based on World Athletics, USA Track & Field, or World Para Athletics rules prior to competing for prize money."The Boston Marathon's website doesn't list non-binary as a prize-eligible category for the 2025 race.The 2025 Boston Marathon took place on April 21, 2025. The annual 26.2-mile race starts in Hopkinton, Massachusetts; the finish line is on Boylston Street in Boston.
