It’s not just the economic numbers from the Bank of America Chicago Marathon that that are compelling.
Indeed, the 2023 race contributed $547 million to the city’s economy, notes a study conducted by Jones & Associates Economics. That means the financial effect of the race — which was $386 million in 2022 — increased by a whopping 42% increase in just one year. And over the last seven years, the Bank of America Chicago Marathon has had a cumulative economic impact on the Chicagoland region of over $2.3 billion.
But there are other figures that tell a similarly engaging story about the Chicago Marathon, which was first held in 1905, discontinued in the 1920s, then restarted in 1977. Here’s a look at some of the Bank of America Chicago Marathon numbers from over the years:
4,200: Runners in 1977 Marathon
48,472: Runners in 2023 Marathon
50,000: Estimated number of runners in 2024 Marathon
34: Temperature on day of 1993 Marathon
88: Temperature on day of 2007 Marathon (cancelled during race because of heat)
64: Predicted high temperature for 2024 Marathon (weather.com)
6: Number of world records set at Bank of America Chicago Marathon
7: Number of national records set at Bank of America Chicago Marathon
35: Percent of 2023 runners who came from another country
>100: Number of countries represented by runners
2.9: Millions of dollars raised for charity by 2002 Marathon
30.4: Millions of dollars raised for charity by 2023 Marathon
192: Number of charity partners
1.7 million: Number of race spectators
Photo: © Bank of America Chicago Marathon/Kevin Morris