The unicorn has been a longstanding symbol of the Boston Marathon and the Boston Athletic Association (BAA) since the athletic club's establishment in 1887. Although its origins are debated, it’s commonly believed that the unicorn features on a family crest of one of the BAA's founding members. Jack Fleming, BAA's president and CEO, articulates the unicorn's theme of pursuit - an inspiration for runners to strive harder without necessarily expecting to reach their ultimate goals. The emblematic figure, known as "Spike," has remained a proud mark of the marathon's legacy.
"It's probably one of our most frequently asked questions," Jack Fleming, the BAA's president and CEO, said of the unicorn's origin with the athletic association, which organizes the marathon. "People pause on it, they think about it."
The unicorn is a mythological figure that is meant to be pursued, but in that pursuit, you never catch [it]. So it inspires you to continue to try - to race harder in the case of running - and though it may be elusive, it really is the pursuit of the unicorn that makes you better and better and better."
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