With record-setting software numbers for the 2024 Boston Marathon, 1000’s of certified athletes who hit Boston requirements are certain to have their hearts damaged when the cut-off time is launched later this yr. However what’s the cut-off time more likely to be?
Whereas the Boston Marathon units a qualifying time, a rolling registration is obtainable first to these with the quickest instances. As such, getting that coveted BQ (Boston Qualifier) doesn’t assure your entry. With greater than 33,000 candidates for the 2024 marathon, the race has, on common over the previous 5 years, solely accepted a area of round 23,300 runners, with the remainder reserved for invited athletes and charity runners. (The race has mentioned the sector measurement will stay at 30,000, which it has been since 2015, except for 2020.) Which means practically 10,000 qualifiers’ instances is not going to be accepted.
The query is, how massive will the cut-off time be? In 2019, when the race set the earlier report for the best variety of candidates (simply over 30,000), the Boston Athletic Affiliation (B.A.A.) needed to flip down greater than 7,000 runners, with a cut-off time of 4 minutes and 52 seconds. Which means each runner, no matter age or gender, needed to have run a minimum of 4 minutes and 52 seconds sooner than their qualifying time with the intention to be accepted into the race.
| YEAR | FIELD SIZE | APPLICATIONS RECEIVED | ATHLETES ACCEPTED | ATHLETES UNABLE TO ACCEPT | CUT-OFF TIME |
| 2024 | 30,000 | 33,000+ (new report) | TBD | TBD | TBD |
| 2023 | 30,000 | 23,267 | all | 0 | 0:00 |
| 2022 | 30,000 | 22,936 | all | 0 | 0:00 |
| 2021 (COVID yr) | 20,000 (restricted area) | 23,824 | 14,609 | 9,215 | 7:47 |
| 2020 (digital/cancelled) | 31,500 | 27,288 | 24,127 | 3,161 | 1:39 |
| 2019Â | 30,000 | 30,458 (previous report) | 23,074 | 7,384 | 4:52 |
| 2018 | 30,000 | 28,260 | 23,198 | 5,062 | 3:23 |
Attributable to this yr’s excessive software numbers, the 2024 cut-off time is imagined to be their largest cut-off time so far. Judging by earlier years’ numbers, it’s anticipated that almost 30 per cent of candidates shall be turned down; based mostly on previous cut-off instances and the variety of athletes declined, the cut-off is more likely to be seven to eight minutes. So for instance, in case you certified within the girls’s 40-44 age group with a time beneath 3:40, you’ll seemingly have to have run 3:32 or sooner to be accepted.
The B.A.A. mentioned in a press release that they’re at present verifying all instances and can notify candidates of their acceptance or non-acceptance throughout the subsequent three weeks.
For runners who don’t get accepted or who lack a Boston Marathon qualifying time, there’s nonetheless a chance to take part within the marathon by the Financial institution of America charity program, which incorporates 160 non-profit and charitable organizations.
