kingston's teagan robertson runs personal best as second canadian woman across finish line at boston marathon
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teaghan robertson was back in her classroom at ecole james r. henderson public school wednesday after running a personal-best time two days before in the 130th running of the boston marathon. robertson brought in her medal to show her students in kingston, ont., on april 22, 2026. (phot by gare joyce/the kingston whig-standard)
teagan robertson was back in her grade 3 classroom at ecole james r. henderson public school on wednesday, showing her medal from the 130th boston marathon to her students, the flush of excitement easing the fatigue and soreness less than 48 hours after the race.
robertson, a kingston native who’s in her first year teaching at a grade school she had attended, finished 31st in the women’s elite division with a time of 2:36:14, cutting 97 seconds off her previous best from the 2024 california international marathon. she was the second canadian woman across the line in boston, only 91 seconds after cassandra de winter of vulcan, alta., who finished 27th overall.
kenya’s sharon lokedi defended her title year, crossing the line in 2:18:51, 44 seconds ahead of countrywoman loice chemnung in second place.
the personal best came as a pleasant surprise for robertson, as the boston course isn’t regarded as runner-friendly.
“i didn’t have a time goal that was super-specific,” robertson said. “i was just embracing the experience of being in the professional women’s field for the first time and seeing what i could do on the day giving it my best effort — i’ll do my best and see where my fitness is at. it wasn’t really strategic — i was going to enjoy the energy, the electric vibes with the amazing crowd support, and just give it my all.”
in lieu of targeting split times and micro-managing her run, robertson found more experienced elite runners and relied on them pacing.
“initially, i latched on to a group of a few women and just worked with them for the first 25 kilometres,” she said. “i had a sense of being on a fast pace compared to my previous marathons, the group was incredibly helpful. i just tried to find my rhythm and hold on.”
robertson admitted the inclines late in the race were daunting, heartbreak hill among them — she ran the first half of the race in 1:15:53 and the second in 1:20:21. even with the fall-off in pace, she averaged under six minutes per mile.
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“i’ve always had running as part of my life,” robertson said. “i ran cross-country in high school and in university it was something that i did on the side for fitness and my own well-being. i also was really interested in dance when i was young, ballet and modern — all kinds, really. then during the pandemic, i just dove in and immersed myself in a running journey. it’s taken off from there.”
robertson plans on running the canadian 10k championships in ottawa in may and then training and increasing her mileage with another marathon and another personal best as a target for the fall. she said she hasn’t looked at the schedule of coming events, but she wouldn’t rule out the toronto waterfront marathon on oct. 18 or the new york city marathon on nov. 1.
in the ramp-up for the autumn race, robertson foresees a foundation of longer training runs. she suggested her first year teaching at her grade-school alma mater has competed for her time and energy.
“working full time has shifted my training a bit,” she said. “i was just trying to fit in training. my training volume leading up to boston was between 115 to 130 kilometers per week and then my longest (training) run in this build was 37k at a steady pace. leading up to the chicago marathon last fall, i was running higher mileage weeks because i had flexibility in my schedule. in my first year of teaching, i’m still trying to find the balance with training and work — it takes a strong support system trying to get motivated after a long day in the classroom. i love higher mileage, so lots of kilometres will be added over the summer.”
the performance in boston affirmed for robertson the idea that faster times are out there, which would put her into the national top 10 — only two canadian women ran sub-2:30 marathons in 2025.
“running for me has been like a major source of joy,” she said. “so the process and personal growth that i’ve seen has just been as meaningful as the results that have come with my running. i can definitely see a trajectory of improvement, setting goals for myself. i hope to accomplish so much more. i do feel like i’m at the beginning stages of running journey.”
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