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Just six days after finishing his second Boston Marathon with a time of 3:30:53, Chara finished the 2024 London Marathon on Sunday afternoon — completing the race with a time of 3:11:04.
Chara’s latest conquest marks the eighth marathon that he’s completed within a year’s time, as well as one of the fastest. His personal best is 3:10:24 (7:16 per mile), set during the Chevron Houston Marathon in January.
Chara’s London time was nearly 20 minutes faster than his performance during the 2024 Boston Marathon — although Boston’s hilly terrain and unpredictable weather make it one of the most challenging 26.2-mile courses in the world.
Last week, Bruins captain Brad Marchand admitted he was not surprised to see Chara set his sights on a new athletic venture after hanging up his skates.
“Not really surprised. You knew he was gonna find something that was really competitive, very hard — something that takes a lot of training,” Marchand said. “Something he can continue to improve upon. He’s just a beast. He likes the challenge. With his mindset and the way that he’s prepared for so long every single day, he was going to have to find something that he could continue to do that.
“So it’s great for him. Happy to see him happy and enjoying something after hockey. He dedicated so much time and effort to the game. It’s great that he has another passion that he’s enjoying in retirement.”
It doesn’t seem like the 47-year-old Chara is showing any signs of slowing down.
Chara told the Globe he plans on taking part in the other World Marathon Majors. He’s already run Boston, London, and New York City, which leaves Tokyo, Berlin, and Chicago.
Chara’s next challenge might be getting some of his former teammates to join him on the 26.2-mile gauntlet.
“I’ve tried a lot of things. lately. I’ve tried tennis and played soccer,” Patrice Bergeron said of his current hobbies during an interview with NHL Network in November. “[Chara] has tried to get me to run some marathons with him. I don’t know if I’m ready for that yet because I don’t think my hips and my knees could actually keep up — my back as well.
“So I don’t know how he does it and kudos to him. Zee, I love you. … Eventually, I’d love to get a challenge going and find a way to kind of challenge myself with something to look forward to and kind of work for and get ready for.”
Conor Ryan can be reached at conor.ryan@globe.com.
This time, the people marched in resistance to the harsh treatment of immigrants by the Trump administration.
“We descend from Immigrants and Revolutionaries,” read a battle cry beamed onto the side of the brick meeting house Tuesday.
“The society that stops seeing the people at the grocery line or the people that ride the bus with us, as human beings with beating hearts, then it’s not far off before our society devolves into no society at all,” Gilberto Calderin, director of advocacy at the Massachusetts Immigrant and Refugee Advocacy Coalition said to the crowd of hundreds.
The protest was organized by activist groups Boston Indivisible and Mass 50501, and began at the Irish Famine Memorial Plaza, just steps from the meeting house.
The lively crowd held up signs, waved American flags, and chanted during the march along Milk Street and Congress Street to the harbor.
Janet England of Brighton held a sign that read, “Democracy Needs Courage.”
The protesters, she said are “true patriots because we want freedom and democracy.”
“Although protest is a long game, we can’t give up. If you think about women’s suffrage, gay rights, the civil rights movement, it took years, but we just can’t give up,” she said.
Gloria Krusemeyer, from Alrington, used a walker to join the march.
“I’m irritated that I haven’t done more, and I’m just lucky that I can walk fast enough to be doing this,” she said.
Rick Mueller, from Cambridge, was dressed as Uncle Sam and held a large sign that read, “Liberty and Justice For All.”
“We’re fighting for America, so I’m gonna be America,” he said of his costume.
He handed small American flags out to protesters who waved them enthusiastically.
Ice dumping duties was limited to volunteers and select people.
Among them was Sarah, a mother who brought her 4-year-old daughter, Fiona.
Sarah declined to share her last name for her daughter’s safety.
After throwing ice into the harbor, Fiona shyly said that she wanted to come to the protest to “help families stay together.”
Through tears, Sarah said her decision to bring along Fiona came from wanting to teach her daughter to care about people from all walks of life.
“Kindness and compassion are things we learn in kindergarten and she will be in kindergarten so it’s really important for her to be kind and compassionate,” Sarah said, kissing her daughter’s check.
Likewise, Sara Sievers, from Cambridge, brought her parents, sister, her nephews and niece to dump ice.
“I think this is one of the most brutal regimes we’ve had in this country, and I want my niece and nephew to remember that it’s important to protest, and that we in Boston are part of a proud tradition of dumping things into the harbor with which we disagree,” Sievers said.
The family wore costumes of historical figures including Abigail Adams, Thomas Jefferson, and King Charles.
As the protest came to a close, Martha Laposata, spokesperson for Boston Indivisible said she wanted protestors to walk away knowing their voices matter.
“We cannot stand down,” Laposata said. “When people rise up against an authoritarian government, if they stay consistent and they keep growing, ultimately an authoritarian government will stand down.”
Camille Bugayong can be reached at camille.bugayong@globe.com.
Crime
An MIT professor was shot and killed in Brookline on Monday night.
Brookline police responded a report of a man shot in his home on Gibbs Street, according to the Norfolk County District Attorney’s Office.
Nuno F.G. Loureiro, 47, was transported to a local hospital and was pronounced dead on Tuesday morning, the DA says.
Loureiro was the director of MIT’s Plasma Science and Fusion Center and a professor of nuclear science and engineering and physics. Originally from Portugal, the Portuguese Minister of Foreign Affairs announced his death in a regulatory hearing before the Committee on Foreign Affairs and Portuguese Communities on Tuesday, according to CNN.
“Sadly, I can confirm that Professor Nuno Loureiro, who died early this morning, was a current MIT faculty member in the departments of Nuclear Science & Engineering and Physics, as well as the Director of MIT’s Plasma Science and Fusion Center. Our deepest sympathies are with his family, students, colleagues, and all those who are grieving,” an MIT spokesperson wrote in a statement.
In January, Loureiro was honored as one of nearly 400 scientists and engineers with the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers from former president Joe Biden.
The investigation into the homicide remains ongoing. No further information was released.
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A man was hospitalized after being shot Monday night in Brookline, Massachusetts.
The shooting happened on Gibbs Street. There was a large police presence at the scene.
The victim was brought to Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston. His condition was not known.
Police said the victim was shot three times and grazed by another round.
Authorities did not say if any arrests had been made.
No further information was immediately available.
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