Thousands of supporters, fans, volunteers and loved ones will be watching runners as they race through Chicago for the 2026 Bank of America Chicago Marathon.
Plenty of them will be lining the course, but not all will be.
Whether you're cheering in person or from home, there's a whole lot to know ahead of race day.
Here's what you can expect:
Chicago Marathon schedule of events
The first racers will begin with the men's wheelchair start at 7:20 a.m. on race day.
The race features both amateur and professional runners, with staggered start times meaning runners will cross the finish line at different points throughout the day.
The course has a time limit of 6 hours and 30 minutes before the roads will re-open to vehicles. In order to complete the full distance, runners must maintain an average pace of 15 minutes per mile.
Here's the full schedule:
- Men’s Wheelchair Start: 7:20 a.m.
- Women’s Wheelchair Start: 7:21 a.m.
- Handcycle Start: 7:23 a.m.
- Wave 1 Start: 7:30 a.m.
- Wave 2 Start: 8:00 a.m.
- Wave 3 Start: 8:35 a.m.
- Grant Park open for spectators: 9:30 a.m.
- 27th Mile Post-Race Party: 9:30 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.
2026 Chicago Marathon course
The Chicago Marathon course is often recognized for being flat and fast, with the race starting and finishing in Grant Park and traveling through 29 city neighborhoods.
Credit: Bank of America Chicago Marathon
How can you watch the race live?
Extensive coverage of the Chicago Marathon begins at 7 a.m. on race day and can be viewed right here in the player above, as well as on NBC 5, NBC Chicago's YouTube channel and on NBC Chicago's 24/7 streaming channel, NBC 5 Chicago News, available on Peacock, Roku TV, Fire TV, Samsung TV Plus, Xumo Play, Local Now, Pluto, Google TV, TCL, Xfinity, and FreeVee.
After the elite field finishes the course, an exclusive finish line camera will stream on NBCChicago.com, and on the NBC 5 Chicago News Streaming Channel from…