At age 70, Switzer completed the Boston Marathon wearing her original bib number 261, exactly 50 years after her groundbreaking first run.
On April 17, 2017, exactly fifty years after her historic and confrontational run, Kathrine Switzer once again toed the starting line of the Boston Marathon. At age 70, she wore the same bib number, 261, that she had worn in 1967, and successfully completed the 26.2-mile course.
The run was a powerful symbolic bookend to her career, demonstrating not only her enduring athletic capability but also serving as a global media event that renewed public attention on the progress made in women's sports since 1967. Switzer completed the race in approximately 4 hours and 44 minutes, surrounded by supporters, fellow runners, and members of her nonprofit organization, 261 Fearless.
Her participation in the 2017 race was widely covered by international media, including extensive features by The New York Times and other major outlets, which used the anniversary to reflect on the dramatic transformation of women's distance running over five decades — from a sport where women were officially barred from marathon distances to one where women make up a substantial and growing proportion of marathon finishers worldwide.
This event reinforced Switzer's role not just as a historical figure, but as a living symbol of persistence, resilience, and the ongoing fight for gender equality in athletics.