On Sunday, November 1, nearly 60,000 runners taking on the New York City Marathon will get the rare privilege of having city traffic stop for them as they cover 26.2 miles through the five boroughs. This year also marks 50 years since the race moved beyond its original Central Park loops in 1976, expanding into the citywide event we know today. There's a lot to keep up with, from the professional races and returning champions to a surprisingly large number of celebrities attempting 26.2 miles.
And with coverage stretching from early morning into Sunday night, you don't necessarily have to be standing along First Avenue or waiting near Central Park to catch everyone in action. Here's what you need to know about watching the race, including start times, broadcasts, and how to follow individual runners. Things get going at 8 a.m.
ET with the men's professional wheelchair division, followed by the women's wheelchair racers at 8:02 a.m. Handcycles and select athletes with disabilities start at 8:22 a.m., before the professional women take off at 8:35 a.m. and the men follow at 9:05 a.m. The rest of the field will leave Staten Island in five waves, beginning at 9:10 a.m. and continuing through 11:30 a.m.
The main national broadcast starts at 8 a.m. ET on ESPN2, with coverage running until 11:30 a.m. If you'd rather stream, the ESPN app has the same coverage with an ESPN Unlimited plan, plus an extra hour of prerace programming beginning at 7 a.m. and more action through 1 p.m.
There's a Spanish-language feed during the main 8 to 11:30 a.m. window as well. In New York and the surrounding tri-state area, ABC7/WABC-TV is another option. Coverage begins at 7 a.m., ahead of the race broadcast from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m., which you can also stream on the ABC 7 New York app.
For anyone more interested in the finish line than the rest of the course, ABC7NY.com and the ABC 7 New York app have you covered from 10:30 a.m. until 6 p.m. with a dedicated live stream. That should give you plenty of time to catch the professionals and stick around for the thousands of other runners making their way into Central Park. ABC also has a national Live from the TCS New York City Marathon special scheduled for 3 to 5 p.m.
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