A record field of 6,500 took to the streets of Long Beach before sunrise on Sunday for the 41st annual Long Beach Marathon.
The 26-mile, 385-yard marathon race began at 5:30 a.m. on Shoreline Drive. Runners then passed through The Pike at Rainbow Harbor retail and entertainment center, ran on an on-ramp to the Long Beach (710) Freeway, crossed the Queensway Bridge to the bow of the Queen Mary.
The field looped around the Lighthouse at Rainbow Harbor, headed to Pierpoint Landing, then back through the start/finish area.
The sixth through 10th miles are run a few feet from the Pacific Ocean. The course then goes through the Belmont Shore neighborhood, passes Marine Stadium, goes around Colorado Lagoon, and passes the Long Beach Recreation Golf Course.
The 16th through 20th miles are a 5-kilometer loop through Cal State Long Beach. The field then runs on Ocean Boulevard to the finish line on Shoreline Drive.
The start time for the 2024 marathon was moved a half-hour earlier due to a rare October heat wave. Race officials opted to keep the earlier start for this year’s race, “given the typical weather this time of year in Long Beach,” to ensure runner safety, race publicist Dan Cruz told City News Service.
The marathon field includes Kenny Williams, who has run all 40 previous editions of the race. There were six other runners who were entered in this weekend’s races who had never missed a race weekend, Cruz said.
The 13.1-mile half-marathon drew a record capacity field of 14,000, Cruz said.
Runners from 32 nations entered the races, Cruz said.
The Long Beach Marathon was first held in 1982. The race was disbanded in 1996 because of financial problems, then revived in 1999 under new management.