Sydney Marathon named World Major alongside New York, London and four other key races

SYDNEY – The Sydney Marathon has been elevated to join the World Marathon Majors (WMM) running series, placing it alongside landmark international events including the London and New York races. 

The event in September had a record of more than 25,000 finishers, up from around 5,000 just a few years ago, making it the biggest marathon ever held in Australia. Until Sydney’s candidacy began, the Melbourne event was Australia’s largest marathon, attracting 8,100 participants for its 2019 race.

Becoming the seventh WMM event will make it a sought-after race for endurance runners worldwide trying to run the whole series to earn their “stars”, and help it to attract the best marathoners for its elite field.

“This milestone represents a new chapter for Australian athletics as the sport evolves to embrace recreational runners and inspire the athlete inside of everyone,” Athletics Australia chief executive officer Simon Hollingsworth said in a statement on Nov 4.

Athletics Australia president Jane Flemming called it a “transformative moment” for the increasingly popular sport in the country.

“It is an achievement that will inspire countless Australians to take up running,” she said.

“We’re incredibly proud of the journey this race has been on, and we are beyond excited for what this means for the future of the sport in Australia.”

The Sydney Marathon is a legacy of the 2000 Olympic Games held in the city. It first took place as a test event five months before the Games, with just 1,200 entrants. Since then, the race has boomed.

The race evolved on a huge scale once it became a candidate to join the Majors in 2022.

Shorter-distance events, including the popular 10km were ditched, the course was revamped to take out low-speed turns and incentives rolled out to encourage higher race numbers. The finish was also made many times more spectacular, shifting to the Sydney Opera House forecourt.

More than 25,000 took part in 2024, and that number is expected to grow to 37,000 by 2027.

It is expected to boost the New South Wales visitor economy by A$300 million (S$261 million) over a decade, the state government said in September.

“Becoming a World Marathon Major is not just about the prestige of the Sydney Marathon joining the big six – Tokyo, Boston, London, Berlin, Chicago and New York. It is about becoming a bucket-list city for runners around the world,” Tourism Minister John Graham said in September.

It comes after the harbour city experienced a running boom in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic, with thousands more residents pounding the pavement and joining clubs in search of fitness and community. 

The Cape Town Marathon and Shanghai Marathon are also in the candidacy stage and could become Majors as early as 2026 and 2027 respectively if they meet requirements.

The Sydney Marathon will next be held on Aug 31, 2025.

“We cannot wait to see our community embrace this race as a Major and start planning their visits to run the streets of one of the finest cities in the world. Runners, your Sydney star awaits,” WMM chief Dawna Stone said in a statement. Bloomberg, AFP