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Sculpture of historic marathon runner to be erected on Hayden Rowe Street

The 26.2 Foundation, town officials and guests will gather for a ribbon cutting next Friday to commemorate the placement of a statue of Boston Marathon legend Bobbi Gibb at the corner of Hayden Rowe Street and Main Street.

The ceremony marks the end of a multi-year process that began when Gibb was commissioned by the 26.2 Foundation to create the sculpture. At the time, GIbb said she envisioned the artwork as depicting a generic woman, but the foundation encouraged her to make it a self-portrait.

“The sculpture needs to be about Bobbi, [about] capturing that moment,” explained Tim Kilduff, president of the 26.2 Foundation. He added that the piece captures the final moments of Gibb’s finish on Boylston Street when she completed her first Boston Marathon in 1966.

Gibb made history with her run, becoming the first woman to complete the Boston Marathon. She jumped into the race in Hopkinton after hiding in the bushes near the start line, defying an earlier rejection letter claiming the risks were too great for women to handle a 26.2 mile race.

Kilduff stated that the statue’s placement on the corner pays homage to GIbb’s act of defiance. It will sit “in between where she jumped in at Hayden Rowe,” Kilduff said, noting that the start line location was different in 1966.

“The location is simply iconic,” he said.

Kilduff recounted there were multiple steps to securing the sculpture’s final location. It technically will sit on private property, and the 26.2 Foundation had to get permission from the landowner and the Hopkinton Historic District Commission. 

Kilduff credited Tom Carey, owner of 2 Hayden Rowe Street, for allowing his organization to put the sculpture on the property and build an area around it for visitors to sit and take pictures.

Rep. James Arena-DeRosa helped secure $20,000 in grant money for the construction, and the foundation reviewed the work with Main Street Corridor Project liaison and Select Board member Brian Herr. The firm of Gorman Richardson Lewis Architects was brought on to design the site.

Next Friday’s ceremony will be all about recognizing the people who made the project happen and commemorating an important anniversary.

“It all makes sense, and is all coming together 60 years after [Gibb] first ran the Boston Marathon,” said Kilduff.

— NICK SCHOFIELD

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PHOTO/HHS ATHLETICS