Around 36,000 people, the second largest number in the race's history, will return to the scene of last year's atrocities as they make the 26.2 mile journey from Hopkinton, a town west of Boston, to the race finish on the city's Boylston Street, where two homemade pressure-cooker bombs killed three people and left 264 injured a little under one year ago.

The elite runners had long left the track when the two bombs went off during last year's race, but will no doubt have the memories of the devastation at the forefront of their minds when they take to the course tomorrow morning.

A makeshift memorial has been set up at the spot where the bomb went off near the finish line to remember those that died in last year's Boston Marathon ©Getty Images



The elite field will be led by 2013 winners Ethiopia's Lelisa Desisa and Kenya's Rita Jeptoo.

Desisa, trying to be the first repeat Boston men's winner since 2008, won last year in 2 hours 10min 22sec, five seconds ahead of runner-up Micah Kogo of Kenya and six ahead of countryman Gebre Gebremariam.

His main competition this year will likely come in the shape of Kenya's Dennis Kimetto who cruised to a new course record in Chicago last year, just 22 seconds shy of Wilson Kipsang's world record time of 2:03:23.

Other hopefuls include Ethiopia's Markos Geneti, the Dubai Marathon runner-up in January in 2:05:13, who last won in his marathon debut at Los Angeles in 2011, and Kenya's Wilson Chebet, a three-time Amsterdam winner and former Rotterdam champion, fifth in 2012 in his only prior Boston start.

Leading the American charge will be Ryan Hall who returns to the road after a series of injuries sidelined his career since the London 2012 Olympic Games, where he dropped out at around the 11 mile mark.

The American will be competing in his fourth Boston Marathon and first since 2011, when he ran a personal-best 2:04:58 to finish fourth.

Ryan Hall will be hoping to break a 29-year American drought at the Marathon as he returns for his fourth visit to the famous Boston course ©Getty Images


On the woman's side, Jeptoo will be looking to win a second successive Boston Marathon after finishing comfortably ahead of Ethiopia's Meseret Hailu Debele and fellow Kenyan Sharon Cherop in 2:26:25 last time around.

The 33-year-old added the Chicago title as well last year as she trimmed her personal best to 2:19:57.

Her training partner, compatriot Jemima Sumgong, was second at Chicago last year and in Boston in 2012, by only two seconds, and might be ready to sneak a victory this time around.

Ethiopia's Mare Dibaba, who went to China and won the Xiamen Marathon earlier this year for her first title at the distance, and 2013 New York Marathon runner-up Buzunesh Deba of Ethiopia, could also contend for the title.

The American hope for the women will likely be pinned on Shalane Flanagan, who will aim to become the first American woman to win at Boston since Lisa Larsen Weidenbach in 1985 after a fourth-place showing last year in her debut in the race.

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