Last Sunday’s 2025 New York City Marathon is once again at the top of the distance running podium after 59,226 participants crossed the finish line, setting a new record for the largest marathon ever.
New York Road Runners, the organizer of the race, announced the total on Monday along with a detailed breakdown of the statistics of the event.
The new mark pushes past April’s London Marathon total that saw 56,640 finishers on its way to the previous world record which broke the 55,646 record set in 2024 in New York.
With New York shattering the record for the second year in a row, the demand for distance races — and marathon majors — continues to trend upward. It is expected that both New York and London will make a serious push toward surpassing 60,000 finishers by simply loosening registration caps slightly as demand has soared in recent years.
Over 200,000 people applied for this year’s 2025 New York City Marathon, a record number of applications, while London also broke applicant records for next year’s race with 1.1 million people vying for a bib. It also means race organizers in New York allowed more than 3,500 more participants for this year’s event.
Sunday’s race was full of eager participants, but was also packed with action as Benson Kipruto won the men’s race in a dramatic photo finish in 2:08:09 over Alexander Mutiso surged with a final lean. Meanwhile, Hellen Obiri surged in the closing stages of the women’s race to push past Sharon Lokedi and take the win in a 2:19:51 course record performance.
Kipruto and Obiri lead the way for a complete Kenyan sweep as the nation claimed all six podium spots.
In the men’s wheelchair, Marcel Hug won his record seventh race in New York in 1:30:16 and Susannah Scaroni found victory in the women’s wheelchair race in 1:42:10 over Tatyana McFadden (1:47:54).
Number of finishers
59,226
Number of starters
59,662
Men’s finishers
31,927
Women’s finishers
27,156
Non-binary finishers
143
International finishers
18,660
Countries represented
132
Men’s open division champion
Benson Kipruto, 2:08:09
Women’s open division champion
Hellen Obiri, 2:19:51
Men’s wheelchair division champion
Marcel Hug, 1:30:16
Women’s wheelchair division champion
Susannah Scaroni, 1:42:10
