Pakistani runners chase history at Boston Marathon

KARACHI: A group of 18 Pakistani runners will be chasing more than just personal bests at the 129th Boston Marathon on Monday.

Among them, two men will attempt a Guinness World Record for the fastest marathon in traditional shalwar kameez, while six others will complete a rare global feat: finishing all six of the world’s major marathons.

For Danish Elahi and Faisal Shafi, the goal is to cross the finish line in under four hours while wearing Pakistan’s national dress on one of running’s toughest courses. No one has ever officially done it before.

“This isn’t just about us,” said Danish Elahi, who will also earn his “Six Star” medal in Boston after completing the other five World Marathon Majors. “When people see us running in green and white, we want them to remember Pakistan for something joyful.”

Shafi, who dreamed up the idea, said the record attempt is about national pride. “We’re putting Pakistan’s name in the history books,” he told this correspondent ahead of his flight to Boston from Karachi. “But more than that, we’re showing our culture to the world.”

“The idea of running a marathon in shalwar kameez was to represent Pakistan and present an image of our culture on the global platform and to set a world record while running a marathon to show that we carry pride in our national dress,” said Faisal.

The duo’s unusual attire adds difficulty to an already grueling race. The Boston Marathon’s infamous “Heartbreak Hill” at Mile 20 has broken many runners’ spirits, and the shalwar kameez — while comfortable for daily wear — isn’t designed for speed. “We haven’t done long training runs in it,” admitted Shafi, citing time consumed while securing Guinness approval. “But we are ready for the challenge.”

“This will send a positive image about Pakistan and our culture, this run will portray Pakistan as a peace loving country and running enthusiasts and as extremely hospitable and a friendly united nation,” he said.

Their effort follows a failed 2018 attempt by Canadian runner Prakash Banisetty, who missed the four-hour mark. For six Pakistani runners, Boston marks the end of a years-long quest to complete the Abbott World Marathon Majors series: Boston, New York, Chicago, Berlin, London and Tokyo.

Adnan Gandhi, a Karachi based runners, logged 250 miles in March — mostly at night with his local club SVRC. “Boston training during Ramadan was brutal,” he said. “But our community kept me going.”

According to Adnan, who trained mostly in Karachi, the course replication was always a challenge in Karachi. “Luckily, we have lots of members in SVRC who try new routes, and the team that went to the NY Marathon in 2024 had created some very tough hill training in DHA Phase 5 and 6. So we would do 500-meter hill repeats 10 to 14 times, once a week during the months of February and March; including night sessions in Ramadan. Mentally you just have to be ready for the work, and physically you have to essentially plan your whole week around this one workout,” Adnan said about his training ahead of Boston Marathon/

“We start early before the heavy school traffic. Which means waking up as early as 4:30am 6 days a week. But that is also the only way to beat the high temperatures or bright sun. For Boston, we had to run mostly at night, so that created a different challenge as poor road conditions and most street lights being off means we could run in DHA Phase-8, meaning course variety was extremely limited,” he highlighted.

Boston Marathon 2025, with tens of thousands of runners and a million spectators, will test their endurance on the 26.2-mile route from Hopkinton to Boylston Street. But for many, the real finish line is broader. “We’re used to Pakistan making headlines for the wrong reasons,” said Elahi. “This time, maybe we can change that.”