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Boston has to decide quickly on 2022 marathon

BOSTON (AP) — First was the marathon.

Now comes the sprint.

A day after the only fall race in the Boston Marathon’s 125-year history, organizers turned their attention to the 2022 event and whether to keep any of this year’s pandemic-inspired changes.

Complicating their planning: they have half the usual time to decide.

“I know we call it the 125th, but this one was like starting over again,” race director Dave McGillivray said on Tuesday, about 24 hours after Kenyans Benson Kipruto and Diana Kipyogei broke the tape on Boylston Street. “Next year, who knows if we do anything like this?”

One decision that’s already been made: the race won’t immediately go back to the full, pre-pandemic field size of more than 30,000 when it returns to its traditional Patriots’ Day start on April 18, 2022. To allow for greater social distancing at the start and on the course, this year’s field was capped at about 18,000 — with 15,736 making it to the starting line and 15,461 finishing.

How much smaller is still being debated.

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