Five down – one to go!
Special Olympics New Hampshire athlete Thomas Cantara is just one race away from achieving one of the most prestigious achievements in running: earning a Six Star Medal!
On March 2nd, Cantara completed the Tokyo Marathon in 2 hours, 36 minutes, and 35 seconds. That placed him 311th out of nearly 38,000 runners!
Now, Thomas is working towards completing the Six Star Journey, which involves completing all of the six Abbott World Marathon Majors races.
Joining Thomas for the journey to Tokyo were his mother, Deborah Cantara, and SONH Board Member, Mike Elmer. Check out the incredible photos and videos Mike captured during their whirlwind adventure!
Thomas Cantara blazes through the streets of Tokyo on his was to an incredible 311th place finish in the March 2, 2025 Tokyo Marathon.
Cantara is a Special Olympics athlete who has taken what he has learned from his participation in Special Olympics to become an elite runner. In 2023, Thomas applied for and was accepted by the Boston Athletic Association into their new Para Athletics Division for the Boston Marathon. He competed as a professional athlete for the first time in the 2024 Boston Marathon and won his division.
His remarkable journey so far has included the following marathons and finishing times:
- Boston (4/15/2024) 2:35:23 – Winner of his Division!
- Chicago (10/9/2022) 2:36:28
- Berlin (9/29/2024) 2:31:23
- New York (11/3/2024) 2:39:57
- Tokyo (3/2/2025) 2:36:35
Cantara will complete the final leg of the Six Star Journey in London on April 27, 2025.
The Six Star Medal was introduced by the Abbott World Marathon Majors in 2016 to honor the runners who complete the original six Major Marathons. Just over 20,000 runners in the world can claim this achievement!
The Sydney (Australia) Marathon has recently been added to the World Marathon Majors… so stay tuned for Thomas’ continued adventures as he inevitably prepares to head down under!