The Sydney Marathon has been named the world’s premier marathon, along with New York and London.

SYDNEY – The Sydney Marathon has become part of the Abbott World Marathon Majors running series, joining iconic international events including the London and New York Marathons.

The event, held in September 2024, attracted more than 20,000 participants, up from around 5,000 just a few years ago, making it the largest marathon ever held in Australia.

As the seventh World Marathon Major event, it will be a sought-after race for endurance runners around the world attempting to run the full series to earn their ‘stars’ and will help attract the best marathon runners to its elite field.

“This milestone represents a new chapter for Australian athletics as the sport evolves to embrace recreational runners and inspire every athlete,” Athletics Australia CEO Simon Hollingsworth said in a statement on November 4.

The NSW economy is expected to grow by A$300 million (S$261 million) over a decade, the government said in September.

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

It comes after the port city experienced a running boom following the Covid-19 pandemic, with thousands of residents taking to the pavements and joining clubs in search of fitness and socialising.

The Sanlam Cape Town Marathon and Shanghai Marathon are also in the candidacy stage and could become “major” as early as 2026 and 2027 respectively if they qualify.

The next Sydney Marathon will take place on August 31, 2025.

“We can’t wait to see our community embrace this race as a major and begin planning their visits to rule the streets of one of the best cities in the world,” AbbottWMM CEO Dona Stone said in a statement. BLOOMBERG