New York, October 31, 2018 – More than 2,000 young runners of all ages will participate in free youth running events during race week of the 2018 TCS New York City Marathon, including over 1,000 who will race to the finish line on race day. New York Road Runners (NYRR) annually serves nearly 250,000 youth nationwide through free fitness programs and events nationally, primarily its Rising New York Road Runners platform, and this week the youth participants have the chance to race among the professional runners.

“We are thrilled to once again invite thousands of youth runners to our action-packed TCS New York City Marathon events,” said Rachel Pratt, senior vice president of youth and community services at NYRR. “The Rising New York Road Runners, as well as other local students, will have the opportunity to run alongside champions of the sport and along portions of the iconic marathon course. We hope the excitement around this year’s events will inspire them to keep running.”

On Thursday, November 1, the 19th annual TCS Run with Champions will bring together 1,000 Rising New York Road Runners with members of the TCS New York City Marathon’s professional athlete fields including defending TCS New York City Marathon champion Geoffrey Kamworor, 2018 Boston Marathon champion Des Linden, and NYRR Ambassadors Jenny Simpson, Beverly Ramos, and Meb Keflezighi. The event will feature a series of fun runs that start and finish at the iconic finish line of the TCS New York City Marathon. For the third year, the event features a youth wheelchair heat for the participants in the Rising New York Road Runners Wheelchair Training Program to race alongside Paralympic medalists and NYRR Team for Kids Ambassadors Tatyana McFadden and Josh George.

On race day, Sunday, November 4, more than 1,000 youth runners will race in the fourth annual Rising New York Road Runners Youth Invitational at the TCS New York City Marathon. The kids, from across the tristate area, will start in Central Park on the 72nd Street Transverse, race along the final stretch of the marathon course, and finish at the finish line of the TCS New York City Marathon. As the young runners cross the finish line, the more than 50,000 marathon participants will be starting their 26.2-mile course on Staten Island. More information on the Rising New York Road Runners Youth Invitational at the TCS New York City Marathon can be found here.

As part of the youth running festivities throughout race week, Team for Kids Ambassador and defending TCS New York City Marathon champion Shalane Flanagan will be honored at NYRR Night of Champions on Friday, November 2 for her commitment to NYRR’s free youth running and fitness programs. Flanagan is an avid supporter of NYRR Run for the Future, NYRR’s college scholarship program that introduces young women from across the city to the sport of running. In her second year competing as a Team for Kids Ambassador, Flanagan will return to the TCS New York City Marathon on November 4 to defend her title.

Team for Kids is NYRR’s charity running team, which raises funds for NYRR’s free youth running and fitness programs. In addition to Flanagan, representing as Team for Kids Ambassadors in the 2018 TCS New York City Marathon are professional athletes Keflezighi, McFadden, George, Molly Huddle, and Jared Ward, former New York Giants running back Tiki Barber, model and former professional rugby player Nick Youngquest, and world-renowned chef Daniel Humm.

The 2018 TCS New York City Marathon will be televised on Sunday, November 4, on WABC-TV, Channel 7 in the New York tristate area from 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. ET, and for the rest of the nation on ESPN2 from 9:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. ET.

NYRR’s youth programs are supported by Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), the premier partner of NYRR and NYRR youth and community programs and the title sponsor of the TCS New York City Marathon; New Balance, the Official Athletic Footwear and Apparel Partner of NYRR; and the New Balance Foundation. For more information on Rising New York Road Runners, please visit rising.nyrr.org.

About the TCS New York City Marathon

The TCS New York City Marathon is the largest marathon in the world and the signature event of New York Road Runners (NYRR), the world’s premier community running organization. The race is held annually on the first Sunday of November and includes over 50,000 runners, from the world’s top professional athletes to runners of all ages and abilities, including over 9,000 charity runners. Participants from approximately 140 countries tour the diverse neighborhoods of New York City’s five boroughs—Staten Island, Brooklyn, Queens, the Bronx, and Manhattan. Race morning also features the Rising New York Road Runners Youth Invitational at the TCS New York City Marathon, a race within Central Park that finishes at the same finish line being crossed hours later by the marathon field. More than one million spectators and 10,000 volunteers line the city’s streets in support of the runners, while millions more watch the globally televised broadcast. The race is a founding member of the Abbott World Marathon Majors, which features the world’s top marathons—Tokyo, Boston, London, Berlin, Chicago, and New York. Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), a leading global IT services, consulting, and business solutions organization, is the premier partner of NYRR and the title sponsor of the TCS New York City Marathon. The 48th running of the TCS New York City Marathon is set for November 4, 2018. To learn more, visit www.tcsnycmarathon.org.