A professional field of 51 Olympians and 18 Olympic, Paralympic and World Championship medallists are expected to line up for the final Abbott World Marathon Major of the season in New York City this weekend.
The series of seven world-class races across four different continents started back in March when the Ethiopian duo of Tadese Takele and Sutume Asefa Kebede won in Tokyo, and has since taken in the likes of Boston, London, Sydney, Berlin and Chicago, before its climax on Sunday, November 2, in the city that never sleeps.
Here is a guide to everything you need to know ahead of the NYC race…
Start time and how to watch live
More than a million spectators are once again expected to line the New York City streets for this most iconic of marathons, as runners make their way from Staten Island, through the neighbourhoods of Brooklyn, Queens and The Bronx, before crossing the finish line in Manhattan.
The Men’s Professional Wheelchair Division will start proceedings at 8am EDT (5am Pacific Day Time) at the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge, closely followed by the Women’s Professional Wheelchair riders at 8.02am. Handcycle athletes and selected runners with disabilities will then depart at 8.22am.
At 8.35am EDT (5.35am PDT), the Professional Women’s Open Division will get underway, followed by the Men’s Professional runners at 9.05am. There will then be five waves of athletes setting off at regular intervals: 9.10am; 9.45am; 10.20am; 10.55am; 11.30am.
The UK will be observing Greenwich Mean Time on November 2, so will be four hours ahead, meaning the Wheelchair athletes will depart at 1pm on the Sunday UK time, and the Women’s and Men’s Elite competitors are at 1.35pm and 2.05pm respectively.
The Marathon course will remain open to all participants who can maintain a 16-minute-per-mile pace, with the official cut-off time at 10pm EDT.
Live coverage of the marathon starts at 8am EDT (1pm GMT) and will continue through to 11.30 am (4.30pm GMT) on ESPN2.
A live two-hour show from the finish line will also air nationally on ABC Network, covering celebrities and thousands of everyday runners crossing the finish line, from 3pm EDT (6pm GMT) to 5pm (8pm GMT).
International viewers can watch the broadcast on the following channels:
- Australia: Fox Sports Australia
- China: SMG Sports
- Europe: Eurosport
- France: L’Equipe
- India: Eurosport
- Italy: RAI
- Mexico and Central America: ESPN International
- South America and the Caribbean: ESPN International
- Southeast Asia: Eurosport
- Spain: TVE
- Sub-Saharan Africa: SuperSport
The New York Marathon course
From the start line on Staten Island, the runners will immediately cross the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge and head towards Brooklyn on Fourth Avenue. Once through Downtown Brooklyn, they continue to head north east toward Queens where they cross the Queensboro Bridge into Manhattan.
Once on Manhattan Island, the course takes a turn further north toward The Bronx, crossing the Willis Avenue Bridge, before turning back towards Harlem and the final leg back into Manhattan.
The runners will know they are close to home when they hit Fifth Avenue and then enter Central Park where the finish line will no doubt come as a very welcome sight indeed.
Men’s Professional field – Kipchoge set for New York debut
Kenyan legend Eliud Kipchoge will complete the Majors set when he makes his New York City Marathon debut, having already competed in all of the other six.
An 11-time Abbott World Marathon Majors champion with wins in Berlin, Tokyo, London, and Chicago, he is widely regarded as the greatest marathoner of all time, having also captured back-to-back Olympic gold medals at the 2016 Rio and 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games.
Upon completion of the TCS New York City Marathon, Kipchoge will earn the coveted Abbott World Marathon Majors Six Star Medal, awarded to athletes who finish the original six Major Marathons – Tokyo, Boston, London, Berlin, Chicago, and New York.
“Running the New York City Marathon has been a long-standing goal of mine, and I’m honoured to join the tens of thousands of runners who will run through the five boroughs in November,” said Kipchoge. “I look forward to the city’s energy, its passionate running community, and the challenge of the iconic course.”
Kipchoge will face tough opposition, however, with a strong professional field set to line up against him, including last year’s winner Abdi Nageeye (NED), and both Kenyan champions from 2021 and 2022, Albert Korir and Evans Chebet.
Challenging them will be accomplished countrymen Benson Kipruto, Abel Kipchumba, and Alexander Mutiso. Kipruto won the bronze medal in the marathon at the Paris 2024 Olympics and has finished on the podium in his last six Abbott World Marathon Majors appearances, including victories at the 2021 Boston Marathon, 2022 Chicago Marathon, and 2024 Tokyo Marathon.
Women’s Professional field – Hassan looking to follow up Sydney form
Sifan Hassan (NED), will also be making her TCS New York City Marathon debut following a record-setting victory in Sydney earlier this year where she ran an event record time and became the first woman to run under 2:20 on Australian soil.
A threat across any distance, Hassan showcased her impressive range at the 2024 Paris Olympics, medalling in the 5,000m, 10,000m, and marathon, the first woman to complete the trifecta – in which she raced more than 38 miles, and capped it all off with an Olympic record in the marathon. For her herculean effort, she was named the 2024 World Athletics Woman Athlete of the Year.
Hassan, who made her marathon debut when winning the 2023 event in London, has won four of her six career marathons.
“The TCS New York City Marathon is legendary, and I’m thrilled to take on another Abbott World Marathon Major,” said Hassan. “I love a challenge and am ready to test myself against the world’s best athletes.”
For the first time since 2018, the Women’s division will feature the three most recent New York City Marathon champions, as Kenyans Hellen Obiri, the 2023 winner, and Sharon Lokedi, the 2022 victor, join last year’s champion Sheila Chepkirui on the start line.
The last time Hassan, Obiri, and Lokedi raced was at the 2024 Paris Olympic Marathon, where Hassan claimed gold, Obiri secured bronze, and Lokedi finished just off the podium in fourth.
Course Records
- Men – Tamirat Tola (ETH) 2:04:58 – 2023
- Women – Margaret Okayo (KEN) 2:22:31 – 2003
