Carlos and Mia Sanchez

Carlos and Mia Sanchez
A young woman and her 67-year-old grandfather standing side-by-side with signs reading I GOT MY BQ
Mia and Carlos Sanchez after qualifying for the Boston Marathon
BornMia: May 3, 2002
Carlos: October 18, 1958
EducationMia: Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health
Mia: St. Edward's University
Known forFirst documented grandfather-granddaughter duo to time-qualify for and complete the Boston Marathon in the same year.
Notes
Marathon Personal Records
Mia: 2025 M2B Marathon 3:14:26
Carlos: 2025 Juneau Marathon 3:50:19

Carlos Sanchez (born October 18, 1958) and Mia Sanchez (born May 3, 2002) are American amateur marathon runners. In April 2026, they became the first documented grandparent-grandchild duo to individually qualify by time for and complete the Boston Marathon in the same year, participating in the 130th running of the event.[1][2][3]

Carlos spent 17 years attempting to qualify for Boston, completing 37 marathons before meeting his qualifying standard and gaining entry to the race after the cutoff time adjustment.[4][5] Mia qualified for Boston on her marathon debut.[1]

Both runners met the Boston Marathon Qualifying Standards on the same day at the 2025 Mountains 2 Beach Marathon in Ventura, California.[1][6][7] Their 2026 Boston Marathon finishing times also qualified them for the 2027 race.[8][9][10]

Media outlets, including WBUR, noted that while the Boston Athletic Association (BAA) did not officially track familial relationships among runners, Carlos and Mia were the first documented grandfather-granddaughter pair to both time-qualify and complete the race.[3]

Early life and career

Carlos Sanchez is a resident of Round Rock, Texas. Professionally, he worked as a computer programmer and system administrator in Central Texas.[2] He began running seriously in 2008 at age 50.[11][12] Over the next 17 years, he completed 37 marathons,[13][5] attempting to meet the Boston Athletic Association's qualifying time standards for his age group.[11][14] During this period, Carlos met the qualifying standard at the 2023 Chevron Houston Marathon,[15][16] but missed the BAA's adjusted acceptance cutoff time to officially enter the race. He then spent 18 months recovering from injuries sustained in a bicycle crash during the 2023 National Multiple Sclerosis Society MS150 charity ride.[15]

A young woman and her 67-year-old grandfather are running side-by-side on a bridge
Mia and Carlos Sanchez preparing for the 2026 Boston Marathon

During his recovery, he resolved to "crawl the Boston Marathon"[15] if he was accepted after the adjusted cutoff time. He had achieved a Boston qualifying time in Houston, but his finish time was not enough to get accepted for the 2024 race.[15]

Mia Sanchez grew up in the Austin area and began running in seventh grade, competing in cross-country and track at age 11, inspired by watching Carlos run.[11] She then attended Round Rock High School,[2] where she competed in cross-country and track.[1][11][17] A first-generation college student, she went on to compete as an NCAA Division II athlete at St. Edward's University in Austin.[18][15] She later pursued a Master of Science in environmental health at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health,[11] focusing her research on climate change and sustainability.[19]

Boston Marathon

Qualification

The initiative to run the marathon together began in 2025 when Carlos asked Mia to attempt her first marathon at the Mountains 2 Beach Marathon in Ventura, California.[13] Mia completed her debut marathon in a time of 3:14:26,[6] securing a Boston Marathon qualifying (BQ) time on her first attempt. Carlos placed 3rd in his age group and completed the course in 3:50:49,[13][7] officially meeting his age-group qualifying standard and gaining entry to the race for the first time after 17 years of attempts.[4] Their qualifying performances allowed them to enter the 2026 Boston Marathon as time-qualified runners rather than through charity entries.[3]

The 130th Boston Marathon

On April 20, 2026, Carlos and Mia Sanchez competed together in the 130th Boston Marathon in Boston, Massachusetts. Mia finished with an official time of 3:14:42,[1][8] while Carlos finished in 3:54:53.[1][9][20]

A young woman and her 67-year-old grandfather are standing side-by-side with large letters behind them, BOS abbreviation for Boston
Mia and Carlos at the 2026 Boston Marathon expo

Prior to the race, WBUR reported that the Boston Athletic Association did not officially track familial relationships among runners. WBUR's research found evidence of previous grandparent-grandchild pairs who had run the Boston Marathon through charity programs, but no documented example of a grandfather and granddaughter who had both earned their entries by meeting the race's qualifying standards.[3] The World Marathon Majors has also documented numerous family relationships among Boston Marathon participants, including multi-generational finishes,[21] but its historical review did not identify previous same-year grandparent-grandchild qualifiers either.

Carlos and Mia also appeared on WBUR's Morning Edition to discuss their qualification and what it meant to run the race together.[4] Following the race, WCVB reported Carlos and Mia's achievement as a historic first, confirming they had become the first grandfather-granddaughter duo to finish the Boston Marathon after qualifying by time.[10] The finishing times for both runners qualified them for the Boston Marathon again in 2027.[10][3]

The story received coverage from Texas outlets including KVUE and the Austin American-Statesman, as well as international publications including Canadian Running, Spain's Mundo Deportivo, and Vietnamese publication VnExpress.[2][13][22][23][24]

Post-race Recognition

In May 2026, during the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health Convocation ceremony for the Class of 2026, at Agganis Arena in Boston, former CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky highlighted Mia Sanchez in her keynote address. Walensky described Mia as a first-generation student focused on climate change and sustainability and noted that she had found time during her studies to run the Boston Marathon with her grandfather Carlos.[25][26]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Boston Marathon rarity: Grandfather, granddaughter set to make history with familial finish". The Boston Herald. Retrieved May 20, 2026.
  2. 1 2 3 4 "Round Rock's Mia and Carlos Sanchez prepare for historic Boston Marathon". Austin American-Statesman. Retrieved May 20, 2026.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 "A grandfather and granddaughter both qualified to run this year's Boston Marathon — an apparent first". WBUR. April 16, 2026.
  4. 1 2 3 "Grandfather and granddaughter prepare to run the Boston Marathon together". WBUR. April 16, 2026. Retrieved June 2, 2026.
  5. 1 2 "Carlos Sanchez Marathon View". Marathon View. August 24, 2026.
  6. 1 2 "2025 Mountains 2 Beach Marathon Time Badge for Mia Sanchez". M2B Marathon. April 13, 2025. Retrieved June 2, 2026.
  7. 1 2 "2025 Mountains 2 Beach Marathon Time Badge for Carlos Sanchez". M2B Marathon. April 13, 2025. Retrieved June 2, 2026.
  8. 1 2 "Boston Marathon Time Badge for Mia Sanchez". BAA. April 20, 2026. Retrieved June 2, 2026.
  9. 1 2 "Boston Marathon Time Badge for Carlos Sanchez". BAA. April 20, 2026. Retrieved June 2, 2026.
  10. 1 2 3 "First grandfather-granddaughter duo finishes Boston Marathon". WCVB. April 20, 2026.
  11. 1 2 3 4 5 "Texas grandfather and granddaughter achieve potential Boston Marathon first". Texas Public Radio. Retrieved May 20, 2026.
  12. ↑ "Carlos Sanchez 2008 Chicago Marathon Results". Bank of America Chicago Marathon. October 12, 2008.
  13. 1 2 3 4 "Grandfather-granddaughter duo to make Boston Marathon history". Canadian Running. February 11, 2026.
  14. ↑ "Grandfather and granddaughter qualify for Boston Marathon together". KVUE. January 8, 2026. Retrieved June 2, 2026.
  15. 1 2 3 4 5 "A family affair: How a 67-year-old and his granddaughter are making Boston Marathon history". The Daily Free Press. Retrieved May 20, 2026.
  16. ↑ "Carlos Sanchez 2023 Houston Marathon Time Badge". Houston Marathon. January 15, 2023. Retrieved August 20, 2026.
  17. ↑ "Mia Sanchez Cross Country Bio". Athletic Net. October 16, 2023.
  18. ↑ "St. Edward's University Athletic Profile for Mia Sanchez". Go Hilltopers. Retrieved August 10, 2026.
  19. ↑ "Meet Mia Sanchez: Climate researcher, first-gen student, marathoner". Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. Retrieved May 20, 2026.
  20. ↑ "Recapping the heartfelt moments shared at the 130th Boston Marathon finish line". WCVB. April 20, 2026.
  21. ↑ "Notes for Boston Marathon: Family Ties". World Marathon Majors. Retrieved May 20, 2026.
  22. ↑ "Grandfather and granddaughter team up, finish Boston Marathon". KVUE. 2026-04-20. Retrieved 2026-08-23.
  23. ↑ "37 intentos, 130 años y un sueño por cumplir: una nieta y su abuelo correrán juntos la Maratón de Boston 2026". Mundo Deportivo. April 17, 2026.
  24. ↑ "Ông - cháu làm nên lịch sử tại Boston Marathon 2026". VnExpress. February 13, 2026.
  25. ↑ "'Trust that you are more ready than you think,' Harvard Chan graduates told". Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. May 28, 2026. Retrieved June 2, 2026.
  26. ↑ "'Harvard 2026 Convocation Speech by Dr. Rochelle Walensky". Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. May 28, 2026. Retrieved June 2, 2026.
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