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Early Sunday morning, Mirayda Rivera began stretching as she mentally prepared to enter Grant Park for the start of the Chicago Marathon. Wearing a hat and earrings adorned with the flag of Puerto Rico to remind her of home, the 52-year-old battled last-minute nerves about not being able to finish.

Not only did Rivera travel thousands of miles to compete in her first marathon, she also fought through hip and knee injuries while training.

“My goal is to get to the finish line. I’m going to dedicate every mile to the health of everybody, especially my friends,” Rivera said in Spanish.

Rivera joined about 47,000 participants to navigate 26.2 miles in one of the world’s six major marathons. The course attracts both beginners and elite athletes with its “fast and flat” course, which goes through 29 neighborhoods, organizers said. Participants start and finish in Grant Park, but go as far north as Sheridan Road and as far south as 35th Street.

The Chicago Marathon has been the…