Start Your Journey to the 2024 TCS New York City Marathon
Do you want to run the TCS New York City Marathon? To date, the race has had more than 1.3 million finishers, who traverse the five boroughs and cross the finish line in Central Park.
One of the most popular ways to get a TCS New York City Marathon entry is through NYRR’s 9+1 program: Run nine NYRR qualifying races and volunteer at one event within a calendar year, have an NYRR membership by the end of the year, and run the marathon the following year with guaranteed entry.
Thousands of runners a year run the TCS New York City Marathon this way. You may wonder: How do they stay healthy, motivated, and on track through a process that can last two years?
With the help of NYRR coach Steve Mura, we’ll walk you through the steps that will take you to that start line of the TCS New York City Marathon. “For many runners, training for the marathon begins a year before race day, getting their 9+1 completed,” said Coach Steve. “Enjoy the process!”
Step 1: Become a member of NYRR and sign up for races
If you haven’t raced with NYRR at all this year, “it may be too late to start your 9+1 journey for 2023, but you can still run some NYRR race to learn which races you like so you can run them next year as part of your 9+1,” said Coach Steve. If you have raced, sign into your NYRR account, check your 9+1 status in your dashboard, and determine whether you can meet the requirements by December 31.
To start meeting requirements for the 2024 TCS New York City Marathon, check out our race calendar. Registration is open for most of our January–April 2023 races.
It’s best to spread out your 9+1 obligations over the course of the year, so you don’t race too often. “Some of my favorite races early in the year are NYRR Fred Lebow Half, the Al Gordon 4M, and NYRR Washington Heights, Salsa, Blues and Shamrocks 5K,” said Coach Steve. “These are great to get your body ready for a year of races and a variety of courses.”
Step 2: Get fit and maintain your fitness
You’ll need to prepare your body and mind to go the marathon distance. Start now, so you can build your fitness gradually without getting injured. “We call this ‘base mileage,’” says Coach Steve. “It increases your muscle and joint strength so you avoid injury. As you get stronger, you’ll not only get faster, you’ll also run longer distances.”
NYRR offers programs and products to help you! Learn more about all our in-person and virtual offerings here.
You can also check out NYRR Open Run, offering free weekly runs in parks all over NYC, and NYRR Virtual Racing for access to the NYRR racing experience around the world.
Step 3: Plan to keep racing
Registration for most of our 2023 races in May–August opens later this year, and registration for September–December 2023 races will launch in early spring.
Think about running one of our marquee half marathons in 2023. These can be great tune-ups for the marathon, and they are super fun and exciting in their own right! “One of my favorite spring races is the RBC Brooklyn Half,” said Coach Steve. “This is one of the largest half marathons in the country, and you finish on Coney Island!”
United Airlines NYC Half: Sunday, March 19
Apply for the drawing or claim your guaranteed entry from October 19 to November 16; the drawing will take place November 30. Or you can sign up now to run with NYRR Team for Kids.
RBC Brooklyn Half: Saturday, May 20
Apply for the drawing or claim your guaranteed entry from December 14, 2022 to January 11, 2023; the drawing will take place January 18. Or you can sign up to run with Team for Kids starting December 14.
“The 9+1 journey is a long one, but each NYRR race is unique,” said Coach Steve. “Always remember your WHY when racing. Why did you sign up for these races? To run the TCS New York City Marathon in 2024, the best marathon in the world!”