2023 TCS New York City Marathon Is a Race to Inspire
The 2023 TCS New York City Marathon brought together more than 51,000 runners for a journey of 26.2 miles through the five boroughs of NYC, with countless spectators cheering them from the sidewalks and fans supporting them from around the world.
In near-perfect racing conditions, two course records were broken. This year’s champions are Marcel Hug (1:25:29) and Catherine Debrunner (1:39:32, a course record), both of Switzerland, in the wheelchair divisions, and Tamirat Tola of Ethiopia (2:04:58, a course record), and Hellen Obiri of Kenya (2:27:23) in the open divisions.
Hug won by four-and-a-half minutes over Daniel Romanchuk of the U.S., falling just three seconds short of his own course record from last year. He’s now won the TCS New York City Marathon six times, and this year he won all six Abbott World Marathon Majors races, the only man in history to do so.
Debrunner, competing in her first TCS New York City Marathon, finished more than eight minutes in front of Manuela Schär of Switzerland. Her course record bettered Susannah Scaroni’s mark of 1:42:43, set last year. Debrunner also won the Chicago Marathon and the Berlin Marathon this year, setting a world record in Berlin.
Tola had previously finished fourth in the 2018 and 2019 editions of the TCS New York City Marathon. His time today bettered the previous course record of 2:05:06, set by Geoffrey Mutai in 2011.
Obiri finished just six seconds in front of Letesenbet Gidey of Ethiopia, with 2022 TCS New York City Marathon champion Sharon Lokedi third this year in 2:27:33. The race was tactical, and Obiri's time was the slowest winning time in the women's open division since 2010.
For the first time, the professional men’s and women’s wheelchair races at the TCS New York City Marathon served as the U.S. Paralympics Track & Field Marathon Selection Event. With their performances here today, American wheelchair division top-two finishers Daniel Romanchuk and Aaron Pike (men), and Susannah Scaroni and Tatyana McFadden (women) earned spots on Team USA for the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games.
The TCS New York City Marathon is one of the city’s most anticipated and iconic annual sporting events. For this year’s race, more than 128,000 drawing applications were received from 153 countries and all 50 U.S. states.
On a gorgeous fall Sunday, large crowds turned out to support the runners with cheers, inspiring (and sometimes hilarious) handmade signs, and clanging cowbells.
Celebrity runners today included Sheinelle Jones, Patina Miller, Zdeno Chara, Nev Schulman, Matt James, and Zac Clark.
The ABC News Relay Supporting NYRR Team for Kids featured a dozen ABC News anchors, reporters, and executives—including “Good Morning America” anchor Robin Roberts and “World News Tonight” anchor David Muir—running in support of the next generation. Team for Kids, NYRR’s premier fundraising charity, has raised more than $100 million for NYRR youth programs since its inception in 2002.
New this year, youth runners kicked off race week at the Rising NYRR Kids Kickoff on October 29. NYC schoolchildren from Rising New York Road Runners took part in the TCS Run with Champions during the week, running alongside professional athletes.
The TCS New York City Marathon course takes runners over the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge from Staten Island to Brooklyn, then through Queens, Manhattan, the Bronx, and back into Manhattan to finish in Central Park. It features five bridges, diverse neighborhoods, sweeping views, millions of spectators, and 10,000 volunteers.
The New York City Marathon began in 1970 as four-plus loops of Central Park. In 1976 the race became a five-borough event and set the blueprint for big-city marathons around the world. For this year’s marathon, more than 128,000 drawing applications were received from 153 countries and all 50 U.S. states.
The Virtual TCS New York City Marathon saw thousands of runners around the world complete their 26.2 miles from October 28 through November 5.
