Lusapho April is one of South Africa’s most promising marathon runners. He has returned to Boston to improve on his 15th-place finish last year. Also in 2014, he won the Port Elizabeth 10K and 15K, and the East London Half Marathon. In 2013, April set a course record at the Hannover Marathon and followed with running to third place at the New York City Marathon. April represented his country at the 2012 Olympic Games Marathon, but faltered after he fell during the middle of the race. In 2011, April won both the Hannover Marathon and the George South African Marathon Championships, becoming the national champion. He set a national record in the 25K (1:15:02) at the 2010 Berlin Big 25K. His half marathon personal best of 1:01:15 was earned at the 2014 Copenhagen IAAF World Half Marathon Championships, where he finished 15th.

April trains at Hogsback in the Amatola Mountains of the Eastern Cape in South Africa. He says, “I was inspired by a runner named Cecil Nazo who lived in the rural Eastern Cape town of Addo, where I was born. I saw him train every day, whatever the weather. I decided that I also wanted to be a runner and I started in 1995 when I was 12 years old.” April says the 2012 London Olympic Games Marathon was pivotal for him. “I learned a lot from the race,” says April. “I was in 12th position and feeling good about finishing strongly when I fell at a drink station near 30 kilometers and struggled to the finish. I was very disappointed after the race and thought about giving up running. My coach encouraged me to continue and not to waste all the years of hard training and sacrifice. In 2013, I ran a personal best in winning the Hannover Marathon in Germany for the second time, and then was third in the New York City Marathon.” April attended the University of Fort Hare and studied toward a B.A. in Human Movement Studies. He grew up surrounded by elephants in the Addo National Park, and he is the oldest of seven children. He is a Xhosa from the Mfingo tribe of the Eastern Cape. April has a four-year-old daughter named Avuswa.

“There is only one Boston, with many dreams to fulfill.”