Bruins legend Zdeno Chara can now add Boston Marathon finisher to his extensive list of career accomplishments.
Chara stood out among the masses on the 26.2-mile course from Hopkinton to Boylston Street on Marathon Monday before he crossed the finish in 3:38:23. Chara, rocking the bib number 3333 and competing in his first marathon, represented both The Hoyt Foundation and the Thomas E. Smith Foundation.
You can watch Chara cross the finish line here:
“I’m proud. I’m proud to be a Bostonian,” Chara told WCVB-TV’s Duke Castiglione shortly after he crossed the finish line. “It’s a great feeling. I’m so honored to be sharing this moment with so many runners and fans and the City of Boston, and basically the whole community. It’s something I always wanted to do. And like I said, I’m very proud and very grateful for the team I’ve been training with — Becca, Scott, Lisa, Caroline — they’ve been so supportive and they got me ready for this race.”
Chara acknowledged how taking part in the event 10 years after the Boston Marathon bombing, especially because of how much the Black and Gold meant to Bostonians during that time, made it all the more memorable.
“It’s something we’re always going to look back as one of the biggest tragedies but also one of the biggest bonding that you could see among the people,” Chara told Castiglione. “What this city and the people showed, how they came together and supported each other at the time was incredibly motivational and inspiring for all our us. Running 10 years later, I always had it in the back of my mind and I just tried to obviously give my best the last few miles and I was thinking about all the people that were affected and all the families.”
Chara likely will be among the countless sports fans who will turn their attention from the Boston Marathon to the Bruins’ playoff opener. The Black and Gold will host the Florida Panthers in Game 1 of their Stanley Cup playoffs series at on Monday night. Puck drop from TD Garden is set for 7:30 p.m. ET, and you can watch it on NESN after 90 minutes of pregame coverage.
