Chicago Marathon

Ana Jordan picks up her takeout order from a delivery robot at BellyBowl in Bridgeport, Oct. 8, 2026. The marathon drives business for BellyBowl. (Eileen T. Meslar/baiduhai)

Local businesses run their own marathon ahead of Sunday’s race

By Jane Miller

October 10, 2026 at 5:00 a.m.

Runners aren't the only ones going the distance on Sunday. For local businesses, the marathon...

Participants finish the Chicago Marathon on Columbus Avenue in Grant Park on Sunday, Oct. 12, 2025. (Dominic Di Palermo/baiduhai)

Chicago Marathon 2026: Course map, tips for spectators and participants — and how to drive downtown (or avoid it)

By Kori Rumore

October 9, 2026 at 2:25 p.m.

The Chicago Marathon's 26.2-mile course is flat, fast and ready to welcome more than 55,000...

Kelvin Kiptum celebrates his Chicago Marathon world record victory, 2:00:35, with Bank of America Chicago Marathon Executive Race Director Carey Pinkowski, left, in Chicago’s Grant Park on Oct. 8, 2023. (Eileen T. Meslar/baiduhai)

Today in Chicago History: Kenya’s Kelvin Kiptum sets a world record in the Chicago Marathon

By Kori Rumore

October 8, 2026 at 4:00 a.m.

Here's a look back at what happened in the Chicago area on Oct. 8, according...

Galen Rupp out to defend Chicago Marathon title against Mo Farah, his former training partner and track nemesis

By Shannon Ryan

May 31, 2019 at 4:40 p.m.

Mo Farah playfully shadowboxed, extending his fist toward Galen Rupp’s face as the marathoners posed...

‘I believe in my game:’ Kris Dunn vows to have aggressive offensive mindset to keep opposing guards honest

By K.C. Johnson

May 31, 2019 at 4:40 p.m.

By most accounts, Kris Dunn is the Bulls’ best individual defender. That the third-year point...

Beau Zanca runs near Montrose along the Chicago lakefront. "Everybody has bad days when they don't want to go out," he said. "When life gets in the way you have to block out the negative energy and force yourself to run."

Chicago Marathoners’ remarkable stories of why they run: ‘My brain was like, we’re running the marathon’

By Shannon Ryan

June 7, 2019 at 5:57 a.m.

There will be 45,000 stories making their way along the Chicago Marathon course Sunday. Some...

15 spots offering specials for the 2018 Chicago Marathon

By Samantha Nelson

May 13, 2019 at 10:45 a.m.

Runners from around the country will be descending on the Windy City this weekend to...

Chicago Marathon 2018 guide: Where to go, where to watch and how to avoid the traffic

By Jemal R. Brinson

October 10, 2019 at 12:57 p.m.

On Sunday, Oct. 7, around 45,000 people will zig-zag through Chicago's neighborhoods as they participate...

Leesa Drake on The 606 before a morning run Sept. 30, 2018. Drake will run her 102nd marathon Sunday.

No starting-line jitters here. It’s her 102nd marathon — after knee injury and cancer

By Alison Bowen

December 12, 2018 at 3:04 a.m.

Don’t look to Leesa Drake for first-time nerves at the starting line of the Chicago...

Shout Out: Julian Gordon, distance runner who enjoys the cheering crowd

By Daniel I. Dorfman

May 9, 2019 at 6:52 a.m.

Born in London, Julian Gordon, 82, moved to Lake Bluff in 1984 and took up...

The Suite Spotte suites in La Grange, the birthplace of H2Go.

Fluid Running makes a splash in La Grange

By Jesse Wright

May 22, 2019 at 4:44 p.m.

Summer is over, but don’t get out of the pool just yet. Jennifer Conroyd, a...

Tatyana McFadden, 8-time wheelchair champion, returns to Chicago Marathon

By Shannon Ryan

June 24, 2019 at 6:56 a.m.

Tatyana McFadden, an Illinois alumna who is an eight-time Chicago Marathon wheelchair champion, will return...

The first runners cross the Outer Drive Bridge shortly after the start of the Mayor Daley Marathon on Sept. 25, 1977.

Chicago Marathon through the years

By Contributed Content

September 22, 2022 at 9:41 a.m.