After making a significant life change, Bob Mathew achieved a rare worldwide running milestone.
By finishing the 2025 New York City Marathon, the 61-year-old Arlington native became one of roughly 40,000 people worldwide who have completed the six Abbott World Marathon Majors.
Those 26.2-mile races are the Berlin, London, Tokyo, Boston, Chicago and New York events.
Mathew received a medal and plaque of recognition for his accomplishment, completing the six races over a three-year span. The 2025 New York race was his most recent, with Berlin his first, followed by London, Tokyo, Boston and Chicago.
“Running marathons is a great way to combine fitness, meet people across the world and see different countries,” Mathew told RunWashington, adding:
“Those races take discipline and I enjoy the camaraderie and energy of marathons and they are an uplifting experience. They are a great thing, bring amazing energy and personal accomplishments. Marathons should be a metaphor for discipline.”
What makes Mathew’s accomplishment most notable? The Bishop O’Connell High School and Stanford University graduate began his athletic career later in life and he is a Type 2 diabetic.
He was not an athlete as a young person, not participating in any sports at O’Connell and eventually became a two- to three-pack-a-day chain smoker for two decades.
After suffering a “horrible” cold, Mathew kicked the smoking habit cold turkey and took up running in stages, eventually participating in various local races, then in half-marathons, then full marathons in his late 50s.
“I was disgusted with myself, and needed to do something to change,” the 6-foot, 180-pound Mathew said.
His running career began in small stages in college when, on occasion, Mathew would run along some trails.
Eventually, Mathew ran the local Marine Corps Marathon in 2018 for his first such event. He said he limped to the finish because he had not properly trained.
Today, the local real-estate professional and Bluemont resident prepares much better and has the “marathon bug” big time, having run a dozen such races to date.
His best time in a marathon is 4 hours and 9 minutes at the Chicago event. Mathew said the Tokyo marathon was his hardest to date, finishing in 4:22 when he fell and hurt an ankle.
The next big marathon Mathew plans to run is in Cape Town, South Africa, in 2027. He regularly trains by running on the many trails in Arlington.
“Arlington is a great place to be a runner, because there are so many good trails,” Mathew said. “I just love how runner-friendly Arlington is.”
Going forward, more races are being added to the Abbott World Marathon Majors series. Mathew plans to run any that are added, like the Sydney marathon and the Sanlam Cape Town race in South Africa.
