CHICAGO MARATHON EXCITEMENT BUILDS

View of Chicago skyline from Grant parl Taken by PKSenagore June 16, 2018. All rights reserved.

BOSTON MARATHON CHAMPION “CITIZEN RUNNER” YUKI KAWAUCHI WILL JOIN Mo Farah and Galen Rupp at the 2018 Bank of America Chicago Marathon this October 7! The BOACM June 20 announcement was the headline of a competitor.running.com article. Beside him will be 2016 Olympian Suguru Osako, Kawauchi’s team member on the Nike Oregon Project.  If either win at Chicago, the piece says, it will be the first time a runner from Japan will have taken the top podium spot in that race since 1986.
 
Farah, a four-time Olympic gold medalists and six-time world champion, will be running his first American marathon. Rupp won the 2017 Chicago marathon, the first time since 2002 that an American has earned top honors there. Jordan Hasay will also be returning.  In 2017, she clocked the fastest time ever run by an American woman and the second-fastest time ever recorded for women there.
 
Interested in running Chicago?  It’s way too late this year.  The application window for 2018 closed on November 20, 2017. Runners who registered for non-guaranteed entry were notified of their status on December 12, 2017. There may still be a few spots open through the Charity and International Tour Group Programs.
 
A new way to obtain guaranteed entry was rolled out in 2018, by age and gender specific qualifying finish time.  A runnersworld.com article indicates this practice helps race organizers assemble a field of participants with a range of abilities, in all age groups.  Other big city races have similar policies.
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“The following standards, achieved on a USA Track & Field-certified course after January 1, 2016, will guarantee entry to Chicago in 2018:”
Age Group           Men’s        Women’s

• 16-29           3:10            3:40
• 30-39          3:15             3:45
• 40-49         3:25            3:55
• 50-59          3:40           4:15
• 60-69         4:00           4:55
• 70-79          4:30           5:45
• 80+              5:10           6:30

 
Because registration processes for big events tend to be very similar year to year, plan that registration will open just after the current year race has been competed in late October, and will close in late November 2018.
 
Seems to me that since the exciting 2018 Boston Marathon finish in April both elites and organizers are more eager than ever to put on a good show for spectators.  Boston demonstrated than the sport can capture the attention of the country and world. Whether an almost-elite, a runner who won’t ever qualify, a fitness buff who doesn’t run, or a couch potato, we can pick our favorite top competitors to cheer at a specific contest.  Add inspiring background stories, a rivalry history, race traditions, and a show of grit and will to win on race day and the event can be inspiring and memorable. 
 
Chicago is building the excitement.  Can’t wait to learn more about what’s coming this fall. 
 
RUN & MOVE HAPPY!
 
http://running.competitor.com/2018/06/news/yuki-kawauchi-added-to-chicago-marathon-roster_172405
 
https://www.nbcchicago.com/news/local/Chicago-Marathon-Sets-Stage-for-Elite-Showdown-Announces-Olympian-Mo-Farah-Joining-Race-485561201.html
 
https://assets-chicagomarathon-com.s3.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/2018-BACCM-Rupp-and-Hasay-Announcement-1.pdf
 
https://www.chicagomarathon.com
 
https://www.runnersworld.com/news/a20862626/new-qualifying-times-guarantee-entry-to-the-2018-chicago-marathon/