CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. (CBS19 NEWS) --  When he is not running the University of Virginia, President Jim Ryan is running marathons.

Ryan has run everything from 5Ks to half marathons, to full marathons.

But something about the Boston Marathon always caught his attention.

“You have all the amateurs, like me, and some of the very best runners in the entire world. I don’t know another event where the amateurs are participating simultaneously with the world-class athletes,” said Ryan.

After completing the Boston Marathon over a dozen times, this year’s race seemed like a piece of cake until an injury halted Ryan’s training just months before the start.

“I had a bad Achilles, I had torn my Achilles and had some other problems with my feet. I was not sure I was going to be able to run it, but I’ve been trying to keep a streak alive, so I was determined to get to the starting line if I could,” said Ryan.

With help from doctors, nurses, and physical therapists at UVA, Ryan was able to recover in no time, which is one of the reasons he decided to partner with UVA Children’s Hospital for this year’s fundraising.

“When you are raising money for a marathon, your job is to make sure you finish the marathon. This was the best fundraiser year I’ve ever had, in respect to the Boston Marathon. We raised over $50,000 and over 1,000 people donated,” said Ryan.

Ryan completed the Boston Marathon in a little over 3 1/2 hours, and he is ready to recruit some local runners to join him ahead of next year’s event.

“This is definitely a running town, and one of the best things to do is to get involved in a running group,” said Ryan.