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Boston Marathon Runner Gets Contacted By the Wife of the Man She Kissed

Barbara Tatge kissing a stranger during the Boston Marathon
Boston Marathon runner Barbara Tatge kisses a mystery man during her run on April 20.

Not quite the fairy-tale ending. While running the Boston Marathon on April 20, Barbara Tatge fulfilled her daughter Paige’s request that she kiss a random stranger during the Wellesley portion of the route. 

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The picture of the smooch went viral, and fans got even more excited when Paige asked the local paper, The Wellesley Townsman, to help her find her mother’s smoocher. 

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“I accepted my daughter’s good-hearted dare of reversing the Wellesley tradition,” Tatge said, referring to the women of Wellesley College who used to offer kisses to male runners. “And a good natured man accepted my request for a photo.”

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They got the kiss (and the picture!), but these two won’t be jogging off into the sunset anytime soon. Why? Surprise! The mystery man is married, and his wife was quick to respond to Tatge’s request to connection post-race. 

“While this may not be the ending that you had hoped for, that spontaneous, silly moment in Wellesley captured the fun, energy and spirit of the Boston Marathon,” the man’s wife said in her letter to Tatge (via The Wellesley Townsman). “I greatly admire your spunk and courage and wish you many happy races in the future. Congratulations on your Boston finish!”

Was she offended by Tatge kissing her husband? Not so much. 

“We all thought this story was hilarious because it is just like my husband to do that,” the man’s wife said in her letter. “It was one of many memorable stories from a great weekend in Boston. For me, I’m not mad. Believe me, our friends have gotten a lot of mileage out of this story and I have thoroughly enjoyed watching them give my husband grief!"

As for Tatge, she’s hoping this story will all start to disappear. 

“I’ve been surprised and overwhelmed with all the attention this simple story has gotten and would like it all to go away quietly, I really would,” Tatge told the Townsman Sunday. “In all sincerity, I apologize if the media firestorm has caused him any discomfort. Moving forward I will revert to only kissing single men.”

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