Boston Marathon's Final, Most Inspiring Competitor
— -- Day turned to night, and Maickel Melamed kept going.
Drizzle became downpour, and Melamed kept going.
About 20 hours into his journey and Melamed continued, one step at a time. People around him donned ponchos and held umbrellas high, trying to block the deluge. And when Melamed paused, overcome by exhaustion or pain, they were there, holding him and chanting, willing him along Boylston Street, the final competitor in the 26.2 mile Boston Marathon that started Monday morning.
Melamed, 39, has muscular dystrophy, but it hasn’t stopped him from completing marathons in New York, Berlin, Chicago and Tokyo.
Melamed expected Boston to be his last marathon.
He completed the race after 4 a.m. today, long after the other participants and vendors had departed.
But a few fans, along with cameras and microphones, waited for Melamed at the finish line, interested in meeting and supporting the man who kept going, and going, and going.
