By Salma El-Sakka
The 2026 New York City Marathon, the final World Marathon Major of the year, takes place on Sunday 1 November across the city's five boroughs. Defending champions Benson Kipruto and Hellen Obiri return to contest the 26.2-mile course that starts in Staten Island and finishes in Central Park.
Race schedule and start times
The professional wheelchair divisions begin at 1:00 p.m. GMT for men and 1:02 p.m. for women, followed by handcycles and select athletes with disabilities at 1:22 p.m. The professional women's open division starts at 1:35 p.m., with the professional men's open division at 2:05 p.m. Mass participation waves follow at 2:10 p.m., 2:45 p.m., 3:20 p.m., 3:55 p.m., and 3:30 p.m. GMT.
How to watch
UK viewers can watch live on HBO Max and TNT Sports from 1:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. GMT. In the United States, coverage airs on ESPN2 from 8:00 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. ET.
Prize money and course records
The open division offers $100,000 for first place, $60,000 for second, and $40,000 for third, with payments down to 10th place. An additional $50,000 bonus is awarded to any winner who breaks the course record: 2:04:58 for men (Tamirat Tola, 2023) and 2:19:51 for women (Hellen Obiri, 2025).
Elite men's field
Kipruto leads a deep men's field that includes Deresa Geleta (2:02:38), CyBrian Kotut (2:03:22), Zouhair Talbi (2:03:45), Abdi Nageeye (2:04:20), Geoffrey Kamworor (2:04:23), and several other sub-2:06 performers. British hopes rest on Patrick Dever (2:06:18) and Jack Rowe (2:07:47), who are targeting Olympic qualifying standards for Los Angeles 2028.
Elite women's field
Obiri, who set the course record last year, heads the women's start list alongside Sheila Chepkirui (2:17:29), Gotytom Gebreslase (2:18:11), Viola Cheptoo (2:19:05), and Edna Kiplagat (2:19:50). American contenders include Jessica McClain (2:20:49) and Annie Frisbie (2:22:00), while Britain's Phily Bowden (2:25:57) also features.
