HIGHLIGHT: MASSACHUSETTS
Boston: Distance running has been roiled by an ugly pandemic-fueled squabble over who should get a shot at a coveted Boston Marathon medal. Rival camps began snapping at each other’s heels this week after the Boston Athletic Association, which still hopes to hold a truncated in-person edition of the footrace in October, said it will award medals to up to 70,000 athletes if they go the distance wherever they are. Some grumble that mailing medals to people who run or even walk 26.2 miles elsewhere will cheapen the experience. Most others counter that anything that helps the marathon survive the COVID-19 crisis is worthwhile.