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Bruins legend Zdeno Chara discloses reason behind running his first marathon in Boston
Former Boston Bruins captain Zdeno Chara didn't sit back after taking his retirement after an illustrious 24-season-long NHL career. In a recent interview, the towering 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) tall Zdeno Chara, nicknamed "Big Z," opened up about his feelings on running his first 26.2-mile course and why it had to be in Boston.
“I wanted that to be where my first race was"
The Star defenseman made his mind to ace another athletic sport and ran the 128th Boston Marathon. Now, the Norris Trophy winner has said that he always wanted his first race to be in Boston.
“Knowing the town, knowing the streets. It was always so fun to watch during the hockey season when I was playing. I always wished to run a race there.”
Zdeno, who had captained Boston's hockey team for a remarkable 14 years (2006 to 2020), confessed feeling nervous in his first-ever marathon in the city that had become his second home.
“I was super-nervous—you start thinking about everything that could go wrong".
The 47-year-old Zdeno Chara, who retired in 2022 after playing 1,652nd NHL games, the most by a defenceman, quickly rediscovered his competitive fire and finished the Boston Marathon with an impressive timing of 3:38:23.
“The experience was crazy, in a good way,” he said “It was like a parade.”
Widely regarded as one of the best defencemen of his generation, the former Slovak professional played for four different clubs. Most notably, his tenure with the Boston Bruins, with whom he served as captain for 14 seasons, cemented his legacy. Chara led Boston to a famous Stanley Cup victory in 2011, along with two other appearances in the Stanley Cup Final in 2013 & 2019.
Running free: Zdeno Chara's life away from hockey
The 2011 Stanley Cup-winning captain Zdeno Chara's second athletic wind is in no way looking to slow down. Chara, who retired from his 24-year-long NHL career in 2022 after playing over 1600 games, ran the 128th Boston Marathon, his first, on April 15, 2024.
In an astonishing display of endurance, the 47-year-old former NHL star not only completed his second marathon in London less than a week later but also shattered a new personal best. Chara finished a 26.2-mile course at the London Marathon in 3:11:04, 27 minutes less than his Boston time (3:38:23).
Since then, the Slovakian legend has participated in numerous marathons and triathlons around the world. In August, Chara, the tallest man ever to play in the NHL, participated in his first full-distance IRONMAN triathlon in Kalmar, Sweden. There, he swam 2.4-mile in the Baltic Sea in a time of 1:26:08, biked 112-mile in 5:12:03, and finally ran 26.2-mile marathon course in 3:48:54, finishing with a total time of 10:40:48.
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