New York City Marathon 2026: UK Start Time, How to Watch and Who to Follow

The 2026 New York City Marathon takes place on Sunday 1 November 2026, and the first mass wave starts at 9:10am New York time, which is 2:10pm in the UK. The professional races go off earlier, from around 1pm UK time if the organiser keeps last year's schedule, and the international TV window runs from 1pm to 4:30pm UK time.

This guide converts every start into UK time, explains why the gap is 5 hours on the day, and covers how to watch, how to track a friend, and who to follow, including the British runners in the field. Edge is not affiliated with New York Road Runners (NYRR), the organiser, or with the race. Everything below comes from NYRR's own published information at the time of writing, so check its website and app in race week before you plan your afternoon.

What time does the New York City Marathon 2026 start in UK time?

NYRR has published the five mass-start wave times for 2026. When we wrote this, its timeline for the wheelchair and professional starts still said to check back soon, so the first five rows below use last year's times. NYRR says all start times are subject to change, so check its app in race week.

The simple rule on race day: add 5 hours to any New York time. If a friend starts in wave 3 at 10:20am, they are off at 3:20pm UK time, and a 4 hour 30 minute finish would land at about 7:50pm here.

Why is New York 5 hours behind the UK on race day?

UK clocks go back one hour at 2am on Sunday 25 October 2026, according to GOV.UK. The US switches a week later. Daylight saving time there ends at 2am on Sunday 1 November 2026, according to the US National Institute of Standards and Technology, which is race morning, a few hours before the first start.

That means for the week between 25 October and 1 November, New York is only 4 hours behind the UK. If you check start times on your phone's world clock during that week, it will show the 4-hour gap. By the time the race starts on Staten Island, the gap is back to the usual 5 hours. Plan your Sunday around 5.

How can you watch the New York City Marathon from the UK?

NYRR's watch page lists an international broadcast from 8am to 11:30am New York time, which is 1pm to 4:30pm UK time, through its global broadcast partners. For Europe, it lists Eurosport.

In the UK, the Eurosport channels closed in early 2025 and their live sport moved to TNT Sports. Last year, UK listings showed the New York race on TNT Sports, which now streams through the HBO Max app in the UK. UK coverage for 2026 had not been confirmed when we wrote this, so check TV listings in race week before you settle in.

NYRR also says its own app will carry complete, uninterrupted coverage of the professional races. That note sits in its US viewing section, so whether the stream plays in the UK may depend on broadcast rights. Test it before race day rather than at 1pm.

• Check UK TV listings for Sunday 1 November in race week.
• Download the NYRR App in advance if you want to track a runner.
• Set reminders for 1pm (coverage starts) and 2:10pm (first wave).
• Mute race chat on social media if you plan to watch on catch-up.

How do you track a friend who is running New York?

NYRR says the NYRR App lets you follow runners in real time on race day through its map section. Add your runner before Sunday, and ask them for their wave now, because their start time decides when you need to be watching.

Timing mats sit at the start, every mile from mile 3, every 5K, at halfway and at the finish, according to NYRR, so updates come through often. For a rough finish time in UK time, take their wave start, add their expected marathon time, then add 5 hours. Most people in the later waves will finish during the UK evening.

Who is in the 2026 professional women's field?

NYRR announced its professional fields on 19 August 2026. Line-ups can change through injury and withdrawals, so treat these names as the field at the time of writing.

• Hellen Obiri (Kenya), the defending champion. She won last year in an event record of 2:19:51, her second New York title, and has since run a personal best of 2:15:53 for second at the London Marathon.
• Sifan Hassan (Netherlands), the three-time Olympic champion, who has the fastest personal best in the field at 2:13:44. She finished sixth on her New York debut last year.
• Sheila Chepkirui (Kenya), the 2024 champion, who was third last year.
• Weini Kelati (USA), the American half marathon record holder, making her marathon debut.
• Julia Paternain (Uruguay), the surprise bronze medallist in the marathon at the 2025 World Athletics Championships.

Who is in the 2026 professional men's field?

• Benson Kipruto (Kenya), the defending champion. NYRR says he won last year by three hundredths of a second, the closest men's finish in the race's history. His 2:02:16 is the fastest personal best in the field.
• Geoffrey Kamworor (Kenya), the 2017 and 2019 champion.
• Abdi Nageeye (Netherlands), the 2024 champion.
• Conner Mantz (USA), the American record holder for the half marathon and the marathon.
• Zouhair Talbi (USA), whose 2:03:45 at Boston in April is the fastest marathon by an American on any course, according to NYRR.
• Andreas Almgren (Sweden), the 2026 European 10,000m champion, making his marathon debut.

Readers in Ireland can also follow Peter Lynch, the Irish marathon record holder.

Who should you follow in the wheelchair races?

The wheelchair races start first, so they give UK viewers the first finishes of the afternoon. Marcel Hug of Switzerland is the defending champion with a record seven New York titles, and NYRR says he has already won Tokyo, Boston and London this year. In the women's race, course record holder Catherine Debrunner of Switzerland faces Tatyana McFadden of the USA, who is chasing a record sixth title, and Britain's Eden Rainbow-Cooper.

Which British runners are racing the New York City Marathon in 2026?

NYRR's announced fields include seven British racers across the four professional divisions. Personal bests are as NYRR listed them in August.

Dever is the one to watch in the men's race after last year's podium, and with Weir, Smith and Lawson all entered, the men's wheelchair race could have a British story in it too.

What is the New York City Marathon course like?

The race covers 26.2 miles (42.2km) through all five boroughs. It starts at Fort Wadsworth on Staten Island and crosses the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge into Brooklyn, where runners spend almost half the race. The Pulaski Bridge takes them into Queens at halfway, then the Queensboro Bridge brings them into Manhattan around mile 15 and up First Avenue, one of the loudest stretches of the day.

Around mile 20, the Willis Avenue Bridge takes the race into the Bronx for a short section before the Madison Avenue Bridge leads back into Manhattan, down Fifth Avenue and into Central Park for the finish on West Drive. The bridges hold most of the climbing, and spectators are not allowed on them, so those miles go quiet.

2026 is a landmark year. It marks 50 years since the race first left Central Park and ran through the five boroughs, on 24 October 1976. NYRR has also made a small change in the Bronx, the first course change in 15 years. For the mile-by-mile detail, entry routes and a training framework, see our NYC Marathon complete training and race guide.

How do you plan a race-watching Sunday from the UK?

Nothing starts until 1pm UK time, so you have the whole morning for your own long run or session. Here is a rough afternoon plan, using last year's professional start times. The finish times are our estimates from typical winning times, not official figures.

• Morning: get your own run done, then refuel.
• 1pm: international coverage starts and the wheelchair races begin.
• 1:35pm and 2:05pm: the professional women and men start, if the 2025 times hold.
• Around 2:30pm to 2:45pm: the first wheelchair finishes, roughly.
• Around 4pm to 4:20pm: the professional winners finish, roughly.
• 4:30pm: the last wave starts and the international broadcast window ends.
• Evening: keep the app open for friends in the later waves.

Inspired to run a marathon yourself?

Watching nearly 60,000 people cross New York is a strong push to book your own race. If you are starting from scratch, begin with marathon training for beginners: where to start. If you have a spring place, our London Marathon 2027 training plan maps out the build.

Edge is free to download, and Edge Pro, from £19.99 a month with a 7-day free trial, gives you a fully personalised plan across running, strength, HIIT and mobility, ready within 24 hours. You can message a real coach anytime, and Edge syncs with Strava, Garmin, Apple Health and Coros, so your long runs and gym sessions sit in one plan. Edge has 20,000+ members.

This article is general guidance, not medical advice. If you are new to exercise, returning from injury, pregnant, or managing a health condition, speak to your GP before starting, and see a physio for any niggle that does not settle.