Arlington , Va. ( CNN ) -- For some athletes , running the Marine Corps Marathon is about the exhilaration of running 26.2 miles , pushing through one 's physical limits and the thrill of taking those first steps past the finish line . It requires months of dedicated training and grueling discipline . But for other runners , like Salina Jimenez , it 's about something larger than herself . Jimenez laced up her sneakers Sunday to pay tribute to her late husband , Army Sgt . David Jimenez Almazan , a combat medic from Van Nuys , California . Almazan was killed in 2006 by a roadside bomb in Iraq just three weeks after his deployment . He was 27 . Jimenez , a Huntington Beach , California resident who has run two other marathons , says she runs to keep the memory of her husband alive . `` Every mile is a memory , '' Jimenez said . `` He once said that life is about the memories , so every mile creates a new memory that we 're able to share and experience with other runners . '' Almazan , a native of Mexico , was granted American citizenship posthumously . As she prepared for the race , Jimenez wanted people to remember her husband for the man that he was . In addition to loving soccer and salsa dancing , Almazan also loved the country he died for , she said . Jimenez ran as a member of a team fielded by Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors ( TAPS ) , a group that supports surviving family members of loved ones lost in combat . This year , 265 runners ran for TAPS ' `` Run and Remember Team . '' Like many of her teammates , Jimenez ran with a photo of her husband pinned to the lapel of her jersey , one that she carries for every race . `` I keep it close to my heart , '' she says , `` David was an amazing man . He was a medic , so he cared about people . He would take the shirt off his back for you even if you were a stranger and that 's what motivates me to get out there and pound pavement . '' Minutes before Jimenez approached the starting line , she shared her angst about the course , which ends with a final hill up to the finish line near the Iwo Jima Memorial . It 's considered the final challenge of the runner 's journey . Some 8,597 current and former military personnel participated in the 35th Marine Corps marathon , which took athletes through Northern Virginia and the District of Columbia . Nearly 22,000 total runners finished the event . Security was heightened for Sunday 's race due to recent shots fired by an unknown gunman or gunmen at various Marine Corps military sites . In the final leg of the race , Jimenez said she thought about the day she found out her husband was killed . At mile 25 , with little strength left , she said she got a rush of energy before making her final quest up the hill . `` It was like he was right there . I could hear him saying , 'Are you done yet ? Hurry up ! ' '' Like most runners , she admitted to she doubts as she approached the last few miles : `` I said , ' I do n't know if I can do this , David . I love you . ' '' But the hill signified much more . `` It 's the journey , it 's the climb , it 's equivalent to the journey we 're on , the grief journey . '' Jimenez says she 'll definitely be back for next year 's marathon , which offers no prize money and is dubbed the `` People 's Marathon . '' `` Even though that day took away something special , he lives in all these miles , '' she said afterward . `` It was phenomenal . ''
Widow runs marathons to remember fallen medic . Score: 6 David Jimenez Almazan became U.S. citizen after death . Nearly 22,000 people finished popular Marine Corps Marathon .