No Official Finish For Slow Marathoners In NYC

The cutoff is 8 1/2 hours.

By the time these ING NewYork City Marathon competitors come through Central Park, it’s dark. The fans are gone. The streets are still littered with squished cups. Workers are dismantling signs and hurrying to get home.

And for these competitors, those who come across the line at  8 1/2 hours or more there may be some bad news: No official time for you.

“Publicly, we have to have a deadline, because we don’t want to encourage people to still be out there running when the roads are reopening, and it just may not be their day,” said Mary Wittenberg, director of the race. “Better to have them come back and try to finish another day.”

According the New York Road Runners, timing and scoring stops after 7 p.m. This is 8 1/2 hours after the start. The marathon’s roads begin to open 6 1/2 hours after the start.

Though their time may not count, they still receive a finisher’s medal. The conclusion of the race is staffed well into the night. 

For More: New York Daily News