NYC Marathon 2026: who to watch as Obiri and Kipruto defend their titles in a record field

The TCS New York City Marathon starts this morning on Staten Island with a record field of about 60,000 runners, ABC7 New York reported, in the year the race marks the 50th anniversary of its five-borough course. The race began in 1970 as loops inside Central Park, and the first six editions stayed there. Here is who to watch at the front. For start times, TV and where to cheer, see our race-day guide; for street closures, see road closures and subway changes.

Professional women

Hellen Obiri of Kenya is back after winning last year in a course record of 2:19:51, nearly three minutes faster than the previous best, set in 2003. Her field, according to World Athletics, includes Olympic champion Sifan Hassan of the Netherlands, who owns the fastest personal best in the race (2:13:44) and finished sixth here last year; 2024 New York champion Sheila Chepkirui; 2022 world champion Gotytom Gebreslase; and last year's world bronze medalist Julia Paternain.

Hassan has not raced in 2026 after pulling out of April's London Marathon with an Achilles injury, Runner's World reported. She told World Athletics she had more time to prepare this year and wants to be competitive.

The biggest American storyline is Weini Kelati, who holds the U.S. half marathon record (1:06:04) and makes her marathon debut. Jess McClain, who ran 2:20:49 in Boston this year, Fiona O'Keeffe and Annie Frisbie, fifth here last year, round out a deep U.S. group, Runner's World reported.

Professional men

Benson Kipruto of Kenya won last year's men's race by a fraction of a second, both he and runner-up Alexander Mutiso clocking 2:08:09. He faces two other former New York champions, Geoffrey Kamworor (2017 and 2019) and Abdi Nageeye (2024), plus Deresa Geleta of Ethiopia, whose 2:02:38 best is second in the field, and Kenya's CyBrian Kotut, according to World Athletics. Sweden's Andreas Almgren, the European 5,000-meter and half marathon record holder, makes his marathon debut.

The top Americans are Conner Mantz, who set the U.S. record of 2:04:43 in Chicago in 2025 and is running his first marathon since, after injuries, and Zouhair Talbi, who won Houston in a course record in January and ran 2:03:45 in Boston, Runner's World reported.

Wheelchair races

Marcel Hug, a seven-time New York winner, returns to defend his title against former winners Daniel Romanchuk and David Weir, ABC7 reported. The women's race includes Tatyana McFadden, Catherine Debrunner and Madison de Rozario, while two-time defending champion Susannah Scaroni goes for a third straight title nearly three months after giving birth to her first child.

How to follow it

• TV: WABC-TV Channel 7 starts pre-race coverage at 7 a.m. and carries the race live from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m., ABC7 said.
• Finish line: ABC7NY.com streams a live view of the finish from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
• Start times and cheering spots: see our race-day guide.

We'll update this story with the winners.