A Big First in Second City

Multi-sport star athlete Emma English competes in the Chicago Marathon

By Cary Shuman

Emma English was a multi-sport standout at the Brooks School in North Andover, garnering awards in ice hockey, field hockey and crew, serving as a team captain, and receiving 12 varsity letters total.

English continued her athletic career as a Division 1 rower at Boston University, the same elite school where her father, James English, years earlier, was a Division 1 star quarterback and NFL prospect. Emma transferred to Providence College, graduating in 2022 with a degree in Health Policy and Management. She also holds a degree in nursing from Salem State University and is now a registered nurse.

Athletically, English has taken her talents in an entirely new direction: long distance running. And this past weekend, 1,000 miles from Winthrop, English participated in the Chicago Marathon, one of the world’s most famous long-distance races.

“This was my first marathon,” said English. “I got under four hours, which was my goal, and it was so much fun. Seriously, it was one of the best days of my life. The crowd was amazing and the weather [mid-60s] was perfect. And I had a bunch of my friends and family supporting me. It was an overall great day.”

Emma’s mother, Claudia English, and older sister, Flora English, were along the course as Emma joined 50,000 runners at the starting line at Grant Park.

One night earlier, Emma and her family gathered for a dinner at a Chicago restaurant. “We carb-loaded on Italian food,” related Emma.

The 5-foot-8-inch runner was somewhat awestruck by the sheer size of the crowd, estimated at 1.7 million spectators, along the course.

“My father was checking in on me during the race, which was awesome,” said Emma.

Competing as a member of the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society team, Emma raised $3,200 for the charity.

English began her athletic career in Medford, playing youth hockey there and for Assabet Valley (Concord) and later for three seasons (grades 6-8) in coach Butch Martucci’s successful Winthrop High varsity program.

English said she had “always been a runner,” but as a freshman at BU, she was required to do some long-distance training runs, “so I feel like that’s when I got started.”

“Once I finished college, I wanted to accomplish something, so I resumed my running,” said English. “I had always wanted to run a marathon. It’s been a goal of mine. I had been to Chicago a couple of times to visit my friends, and I fell in love with the city. Everyone said the course was very flat and the spectators were the best in the world, so it would be fun to start here.”

Come this April, Emma English may be running from Hopkinton to Boston for another special day of memories.

“I definitely want to run Boston,” said English.