2023 Boston Marathon: Start times, how to watch and everything else you need to know
It's time for another iteration of one of the world's iconic marathons.
An estimated 30,000 runners were scheduled to line up this morning for the 127th running of the Boston Marathon – traveling from the nearby town of Hopkinton, Massachusetts to the infamous Heartbreak Hill and the finish line in Copley Square.
This year's race also marks the 10th anniversary of the Boston Marathon bombing, which killed three people and wounded hundreds more. Race and city officials honored the victims Saturday during what they dubbed "One Boston Day," on the exact 10-year anniversary of the April 15, 2013 bombing.
This morning, the races began at 9:02 a.m. ET with the men's wheelchair division, with the pro men's division lining up at the starting line 35 minutes later.
Here's everything you need to know about the 2023 event:
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Elite field stacked with stars
The men's field has a clear favorite this year: World record-holder and two-time Olympic gold medalist Eliud Kipchoge of Kenya.
Kipchoge, 38, has been a near-unbeatable force in the marathon. He's competed at the distance 17 times in his career, and won 15 of those events. This is his first time running the Boston Marathon.
"I've run through (the course) in my mind," he told reporters last week. "It's a beautiful course."
Evans Chebet, who won both the Boston and New York City marathons last year, and Albert Korir are among the other men to watch.
On the women's side, Des Linden will probably be the most familiar name to American viewers. She won this event in memorable fashion in 2018. Also expected to be in the mix are Ethiopia's Gotytom Gebreslase and Israel's Lonah Salpeter, who placed first and third at the 2022 world championships, respectively.
What's the weather forecast?
There was a light fog at the starting line when the men's wheelchair division took off Monday morning, with the possibility of rain in the forecast in subsequent hours.
What is the fastest Boston Marathon time?
Kenya's Geoffrey Mutai holds the men's course record of 2 hours, 3 minutes and 2 seconds, a mark set in 2011.
Bizunesh Deba of Ethiopia owns the women's record (2:19:59), while Swiss nationals Marcel Hug (1:18:04) and Manuela Schär (1:28:17) hold the records in the men's and women's wheelchair divisions, respectively.
Any runner who breaks those marks this year will bring home a $50,000 bonus, in addition to their prize money. The winners in the men's and women's divisions will pocket $150,000.
How to watch the Boston Marathon
ESPN is once again televising this year's event, with coverage beginning at 8:30 ET.
Follow Tom Schad on Twitter @Tom_Schad
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: 2023 Boston Marathon: Everything you need to know about the race
