Significant prize money is on offer to competitors at the 2023 Boston Marathon.
One of distance running’s most coveted events, entrants will aim to cover a challenging 26.2-mile course through the Massachusetts city.
The event’s prize purse, evenly distributed between men and women, has been restructured for 2023.
The Boston event also makes history as the first World Marathon Major to offer course record bonuses of equal value to competitors in the wheelchair and open categories.
Here’s how much finishers stand to earn based on finishing position.
| Place | Open Division | Wheelchair Division | Masters Division | Para Divisions** |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | $150,000 (£121,300) | $25,000 (£20,200) | $5,000 (£4,000) | $1,500 (£1,200) |
| 2nd | $75,000 (£60,700) | $15,000 (£12,100) | $2,500 (£2,000) | $750 (£600) |
| 3rd | $40,000 (£32,400) | $7,500 (£6,100) | $1,500 (£1,200) | $500 (£400) |
| 4th | $25,000 (£20,200) | $4,500 (£3,600) | ||
| 5th | $18,000 (£14,600) | $2,500 (£2,000) | ||
| 6th | $13,500 (£10,900) | $2,000 (£1,600) | ||
| 7th | $10,500 (£8,500) | $1,500 (£1,200) | ||
| 8th | $8,500 (£6,900) | $1,250 (£1,000 | ||
| 9th | $7,000 (£5,700) | $1,000 (£800) | ||
| 10th | $5,500 (£4,400) | $750 (£600) | ||
| TOTAL | $706,000 | $125,000* | $18,000 | $27,500 |
Additionally, athletes in the wheelchair and open categories will earn a further bonus of $50,000 (£40,400) if they break the Boston Marathon course record. The existing records are as follows:
| OPEN DIVISION | WHEELCHAIR DIVISION |
|---|---|
| Men: Geoffrey Mutai - 2:03:02 (2011) | Men: Marcel Hug - 1:18:04 (2017) |
| Women: Buzunesh Deba - 2:19:59 (2014) | Women: Manuela Schär - 1:28:17 (2017) |
What is the route for the 2023 Boston Marathon?
The course begins in Hopkinton, a town in rural Massachusetts, with runners setting off from Main Street and heading down Route 135. They will plod through the towns of Ashland, Framingham, and Natick, before joining Route 16 shortly after Wellesley. Hanging a right on to Commonwealth Avenue (Route 30) by the fire station in Newton Lower Falls, the course continues over the Newton Hills and by Boston College, a university, before arriving at Cleveland Circle via Chestnut Hill Avenue.
The runners will then negotiate a left turn on to Beacon Street as it nears the finish, turning right on to Hereford Street, left on to Boylston Street and eventually concluding near the Boston Public Library in Copley Square in the heart of the city.
