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On 3rd November 2024, Sydney Marathon was announced as the 7th World Marathon Major. This is exciting news for runners around the world who have been looking forward to the addition of more Majors to join the current Major races: Tokyo Marathon, London Marathon, Boston Marathon, Berlin Marathon, Chicago Marathon, New York Marathon. Although, it is no surprise since Sydney Marathon was the host of the 2024 World Marathon Majors Age Group Championships. Until 2024, this race within a race was held in one of the current Major races. However, it was held with the promise of a “provisional star” only for the qualifiers of the Championship. It was only a matter of time before this was made official, and on the day of the final major race of the year (New York City Marathon), it was officially announced.

I have had the privilege of running 4 of the Majors in 2024 as an official pacer. But nothing compares to taking on the Grand Slam in 2023. World Marathon Majors Grand Slam.

It was hard enough doing the Grand Slam when there were 6 Majors. Tokyo is the hardest to get entry to if you can qualify for Boston, but both out of my reach at the moment. Along with the announcement of the 7th race, more questions have been answered.

In August 2021, the plans for Cape Town joining as a candidate race was announced: Abbott World Marathon Majors- what’s next? It is most likely going to be the 8th Major, with Shanghai Marathon currently set to be the 9th. Questions have been asked what about the current 6-star medal, and will we get a new medal now Sydney is a major?

For now, it has been stated that the 6 star medal will remain. So, if you are on the 6-star journey, you can expect to pick up the original medal. If I am able to run Tokyo Marathon again, I will receive a second 6-star medal. If you run Sydney Marathon, this will not count towards your 6-star medal. So, in theory, if you run Sydney as part of your first 6 stars, with a 7th remaining, you will not get the 6 star medal. AND, there is no 7 star medal.

It has been announced that there will be a 9-star medal, which we can assume is most likely to include Cape Town Marathon and Shanghai Marathon, although this is not guaranteed. It makes sense to not create a 7 and 8 star medal and an ever changing goal. In my opinion, this is the perfect solution, allowing the two stage progress of 6 stars and 9 stars. What do you think? Are you excited about the changes?