In brief
The addition of Sydney to the World Marathon Majors enhances its global profile and accommodates growing participation.
As the runners celebrated their achievements at the New York City Marathon on Sunday, attention turned to an exciting announcement for the future of long-distance running. The Sydney Marathon has been designated as the seventh World Major Marathon, a title already held by renowned races in New York, Boston, Chicago, London, Berlin, and Tokyo. This pivotal announcement came following a thorough three-year review of the event, highlighted by impressive growth, including over 20,000 finishers at the 2024 Sydney Marathon held in September.Dawn Stone, chief executive of Abbott World Marathon Majors, commended the Sydney team for their dedication and operational advancements. “The team in Sydney has been working towards this day, every day, for more than three years, and to see the improvement in their operations and event experience to the point where we can now call them a Major has been deeply impressive,” Stone shared.Sydney will be the first new addition to the list of World Major Marathons since Tokyo's addition in 2013, expanding the program that aims to recognize premier marathon events globally. Athletes who finish all seven of these majors will achieve the coveted Seven Star status, paving the way for possible future expansions to a Nine Star program that could include cities such as Cape Town and Shanghai.Participation numbers for the Sydney Marathon have surged dramatically over the past few years. The New South Wales government reported that entries skyrocketed to 25,000 runners in 2024, up from just 5,000 in 2022. With further growth anticipated, officials project around 33,000 participants for the upcoming race scheduled for August 31, 2025.
