The 33rd annual Los Angeles Marathon is underway with a field of approximately 24,000 runners from all 50 states and a record-tying 63 nations, organizers said.
The field is expected to be the fourth-largest among this year’s U.S. marathons and 10th worldwide.
The race will be run for the ninth consecutive year on the “Stadium to the Sea” course from Dodger Stadium to Ocean Avenue and Santa Monica Boulevard in Santa Monica.
There is one change to the 26-mile, 385-yard course from last year’s race. Miles 3-4 will bypass Little Tokyo. Instead runners will head south on Los Angeles Street into the Toy District.
The bulk of the field started the race at 6:55 a.m. at Dodger Stadium. It is expected to be partly cloudy and 47 degrees, according to National Weather Service meteorologist Carol Smith.
When the top runners cross the finish line about two hours, 10 minutes later near the Santa Monica Pier is expected to be 54 degrees and partly cloudy, Smith said.
Los Angeles Dodgers third baseman Justin Turner will be the race’s honorary starter. The Justin Turner Foundation is among the race’s 75 official charities. Its mission is to support homeless veterans and children (and their families) battling life-altering illnesses.
Organizers expect the race’s charities to raise more than $4 million.
More than half of the charities will be showcasing their programs on the course including the Special Olympics; the Concern Foundation, which raises money for cancer research; the Hirshberg Foundation, which supports pancreatic cancer research, patients with the disease and their families; the Widows, Orphans and Disabled Firemen’s Fund; Friends4Michael Foundation, which provides assistance for families of children who are fighting a brain tumor; the Asian American Drug Abuse Program; the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention; Big Brothers Big Sisters of Greater Los Angeles; and Reading to Kids.
There will be 50 bands, four entertainment centers and more than 50 charity cheer zones along the course.
Cheer Alley will be located at Santa Monica Boulevard and Moreno Drive on the Los Angeles-Beverly Hills border. Each of the more than 20 cheer squads will perform their two-minute routine and then line the course to cheer on runners.
The field will include up to 144 “Legacy Runners” who have run all 32 previous editions of the race along with nearly 3,500 at-risk middle and high school students from Los Angeles who participate in Students Run LA, an after-school mentoring and physical fitness program.
New to the marathon is LA Loyal, a program rewarding repeat entrants. Runners who have entered two or more consecutive years will have a distinctive black and gold bib. Runners who have run for five or more consecutive years will also receive a shirt.
Those who have run 10 or more consecutive years will also receive a hooded sweatshirt and a medal featuring the same design as the original Los Angeles Marathon medal from 1986.
The men’s professional field includes the three most recent champions – – defending champion Elisha Barno, Weldon Kirui, the 2016 champion, and Daniel Limo, the 2015 champion. Limo finished second in last year’s race and Kirui fourth.
Barno is seeking to become the first man to win the race in back-to- back years since Wesley Korir of Kenya won in 2009 and 2010.
The men’s race has been won by a Kenyan every year since 1999, except for 2011 and 2014, when it was won by Ethiopians. A U.S. runner last won in 1994.
The women’s professional field includes defending champion Hellen Jepkurgat of Kenya, who is seeking to be the first woman to win in back-to-back years since Tatyana Pozdniakova of Ukraine won in 2003 and 2004.
African women have won six of the last eight races, with runners from the former Soviet Union winning the other two times. A U.S. runner last won the women’s race in 1994.
The race has a purse of $100,000, with equal prize money for men and women. The top five male and female finishers will receive prize money.
The winners will each receive $23,000, the runners-up $11,250 and third-place finishers $9,000. The top American man and woman will each receive a $2,000 bonus.
–City News Service