Running three marathons in a year would be a hefty feat for anyone.
But, Steven Pavao isn’t just anyone.
The 67-year old Hilo local didn’t just run three regular marathons — he ran three of the world’s major marathons, along with a few others — completing London in April of 2023, Chicago in October of 2023 and Tokyo last month to round off his checklist of all six Abbott World Marathon Majors.
In doing so, he became the first Abbott six-star finisher from Hawai‘i Island.
“It was a long challenge, it took 15 years to get done,” Pavao said.
His journey began with the 2009 Boston Marathon, then continued at the 2011 New York Marathon.
“I didn’t even think about it much,” Pavao said. “A friend of mine that’s ran with us over the years and went to New York with me has done the seven continents. He kept prodding me to do the six majors. He and many other people have done the six majors, but the biggest challenge is Boston because you have to qualify for your age — and as the years go by, more people keep applying so they keep tightening it.
“He told me ‘you’ve got the two most difficult to accomplish — New York and Boston — so why not finish the rest.’”
In 2022, Pavao’s wife, Pauline, passed away from cancer. In the wake of her passing, he resumed his journey — running the 2022 Berlin Marathon.
“Maybe two weeks after she passed, I got an email from the American Cancer Society,” Pavao said. “They said that if I want to get into Berlin, to raise $3000. I put a thing out on social media about me wanting to run in her memory, and within a week there was well more than $3000 there.
“It was good, it was good timing. I had been through a lot, my wife had cancer for two years. It was good to have that support. Running in Germany was very perfect timing.”
Pavao estimates that between New York 2011 and Berlin 2022, he ran approximately 55 marathons — including every marathon in Hawai‘i. He has ran the Honolulu Marathon 16 times throughout his life.
The American Cancer Society also helped him take on the Chicago Marathon, but he got in on his last two major marathons thanks to a tour company.
That same company also helped him run in the 2023 Sydney Marathon, which is currently vying to become the seventh world major.
“The company told me that if I did Syndey in 2023, they could guarantee (a spot in) Tokyo 2024 — so I did Sydney,” Pavao said.
Pavao’s training regimen includes five to seven miles of running every weekday, and ten to 12 miles on the weekends. As marathons approach, he increases the length of his weekend runs to as long as 18 or more miles.
Pavao’s passion for running was influenced by his unhealthy past. He was a cigarette smoker for more than 30 years, and began running shortly after quitting.
“I quit smoking and gained all kinds of weight,” Pavao said. “I had ran in high school, so I thought I’d better get back to running. It took me a long time to even run a mile after smoking for so long. Maybe more than a year later, I did the Big Island Marathon and Honolulu. Trying to break four hours took me a couple of years — then a year after, I did 3:38:00, and then I did Kona in 3:31:00 and qualified for Boston.”
Health became a major priority for Pavao, but not just his own health. He works for the Hawaii State Department of Health, and has been involved in the anti-tobacco movement — becoming a certified tobacco treatment specialist.
Now that he’s conquered all six major marathons — and the potential seventh — Pavao is trying to decide what his next goal will be.
One possible target is running a marathon on all seven continents. It wouldn’t be too hard, as he has already done North America, Australia, Asia and Europe. The Cape Town Marathon is Africa’s premier race and a candidate for a potential eighth world major, and Rio de Janiero has a popular marathon that would be a good way to scratch off South America.
Obviously, the toughest continent to run is Antarctica.
“Antarctica doesn’t excite me too much,” Pavao said. “Some people think it’s a great experience, but it’s freezing cold and the only way to get there is through a tour company.”
It costs roughly $15,000 to take a ship from the tip of South America to the southern continent, not including airfare from the US to Chile or Argentina.
Surprisingly enough, there is a real marathon down in penguin territory — the Antartic Ice Marathon, a classic marathon (26.2 miles) which takes place roughly 80 miles from the South Pole. Temperatures can get as low as negative 13 degrees fahrenheit, and the race consists of multiple laps around a looped trail.
“I guess they don’t want anyone to go out in the frozen tundra and get lost,” Pavao said.
But, Pavao will worry about the South Pole later. For now, he’s just going to keep doing what he loves.
“As long as the wheels don’t fall off, I’ll keep running,” he said. “Maybe I’ll eventually scale back to half marathons. I tell people ‘it’s half the distance, but twice as fun when you get to the finish line quicker.’ I initially started running for my health and to manage my weight, but I’ve sustained running for the comaradery and friends.”
His advice to those looking to improve their health — do something you enjoy.
“Some people say that running is torture,” Pavao said. “If you see it as torture, you’re only gonna last one or two weeks. A lot of people sign up for the Honolulu Marathon in January, but by the time December comes around, they’ve got no training. If you see it as torture, don’t do it — do something you enjoy, whether it be pickleball or swimming. Something that’s not only good for your physical health, but for your mental health.”