Keeping tradition alive: 34th annual Hoban Run kicks off in Bay Ridge

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Thousands of runners raced through the streets of Bay Ridge on Sunday, Sept. 18 as part of the 34th Annual Police Officer Christopher Hoban ’80 Memorial Run.

The event, often dubbed just the Hoban Run, pays tribute to fallen Xaverian High School grad and police officer Christopher Hoban, who died in the line of duty more than three decades ago.

On the night of Oct. 18, 1988, Hoban, who was serving in the Manhattan North Narcotics unit, entered an apartment building in Manhattan Valley’s W. 105th Street during an undercover operation. The suspects believed Hoban and his partner could be police officers, and a shootout ensued, killing 26-year-old Hoban.

Hoban, a Bay Ridge native, graduated from the neighborhood’s Xaverian High School in 1980 — and the school has honored him with an annual 5K every year since his death, except for in 2020, when the event was forced to go virtual due to the coronavirus pandemic. Shortly after his death, the police alumni of Xaverian established a memorial scholarship fund to honor their fellow officer, which provides tuition assistance to Xaverian students whose parents are New York City police officers.