Philadelphia Marathon announces equal prize money for non-elite female, male and nonbinary athletes
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) — The Philadelphia Marathon will have prize money and awards for the top finishers in three gender categories — men, women and nonbinary — in the open division of its races this year, city officials announced Thursday.
The change applies to all three races that are part of the marathon weekend on Nov. 23 and 24 — a half-marathon and 8K on Saturday and a marathon on Sunday.
The open division refers to the races for nonprofessional athletes; the change does not affect the professional men's and women's races.
According to the website, the first male, female and nonbinary runners in the marathon will each receive $4,000. Second place in each of those categories will receive $2,000 and third place will get $1,000.
There is also a $1,000 prize for the first Philadelphian in each gender category and a $1,000 bonus for the course record for each.
The top male, female and nonbinary runners in the masters category — age 40 and up — in the marathon will receive $1,000 each.
Awards and prizes are determined by gun time.
The prize categories are the same for the half marathon and the 8K, but the dollar amounts are smaller. There is no first Philadelphian prize in the half marathon or the 8K, and there is not a course record prize in the 8K.
In the half marathon, for each gender category:
- 1st place: $2,500
- 2nd place: $1,500
- 3rd place: $1,000
- 1st place master: $500
- Course record: $1,000
In the 8K, for each gender category:
- 1st place: $750
- 2nd place: $500
- 3rd place: $250
- 1st place master: $250
The races have had nonbinary categories since 2022, race director Kathleen Titus said in the news release.
Organizers "will take a face-value approach to monitoring all gender categories" in the open division, which means that athletes can select the gender that aligns with their identity and will not have to provide any "supporting evidence," the announcement says.
Some nonbinary runners in 2023 expressed frustration that prize money was not available for nonbinary elite runners.
The races are on pace to sell out this year, according to the city.