Boston Marathon release cutoff mark for the 2026 race
In the first year after quickening the qualifying standards, the Boston Athletic Association (B.A.A.) announced that to gain entry into the 2026 Boston Marathon, participants had to run four minutes and 34 seconds faster than the qualifying times for their gender and age group.
The organisation said in a press release on Tuesday that it received 33,249 total applications and 24,362 were accepted, meaning that 8,887 qualifiers did not receive entry into the race. The field is limited to 30,000 runners, and the rest of the race will be filled out by runners raising money for charity, sponsors, and invited athletes.
The 4:34 “cutoff time” is the smallest since 2018, when the cutoff was 3:23. Last year, registrants had to run 6:51 faster than their respective qualifying times—the largest in a non-pandemic year.
“The sport of marathoning is gaining momentum worldwide, and we recognise the dedication it takes to qualify and earn a spot on the starting line for the Boston Marathon,” said Jack Fleming, the president and CEO of the B.A.A., in a statement. “Unfortunately, we’re unable to accept all applicants into the event, but we do want to applaud all who train and aspire to participate in the Boston Marathon.”
Last September, the B.A.A. announced that the qualifying times for runners aged 18-59 would be five minutes quicker for the 2026 race. Standards for runners 60+ did not change.
The B.A.A. also revealed in June that for the 2027 race, participants will be subject to new rules on net-downhill qualifying races. Courses that drop 1,500 to 5,999 feet in net elevation will be subject to time adjustments.
For the 2026 race, citizens from 120 countries were accepted, including 13,823 men, 10,429 women, and 110 non-binary runners. 719 registrants earned entry by finishing 10 or more Boston Marathons in a row.
