The marathon industry collects billions from runners every year. Entry fees that cost more than a week's work at minimum wage. Race organizations that call themselves nonprofits while their executives earn seven figures. Prize structures that say "equal" but carve out exceptions for every athlete who doesn't fit neatly into one of two checkboxes.
Meanwhile, Black and brown runners are still harassed, followed, and shot while doing the same thing wealthy suburban runners do on weekends without a second thought. Safe infrastructure — sidewalks, crosswalks, lit paths — maps almost exactly onto zip code income.
Running is one of the most human things there is. It belongs to everyone. What's been built around it doesn't reflect that. We're keeping score.
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Our Values
What We Stand For
The eight things we actually believe about running, access, and accountability.
Read →
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Race Scorecard
The Splits
Run the numbers on any major marathon. Entry fees, prize equity, leadership diversity, and more.
Check the score →
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Data & Research
The Rundown
The numbers the running industry would rather you not obsess over.
See the data →
Our Values
What We Stand For
Eight clear things. No disclaimers.
01
Running is for everyone — and any race, organization, or industry that prices out working people has chosen a side.
02
Every finisher deserves equal recognition — regardless of gender, disability, or how they identify — and "equal" doesn't mean a separate, lesser prize.
03
Race organizations must be transparent about where the money goes, because calling yourself a nonprofit while running a commercial event is not accountability — it's branding.
04
The neighborhoods that host mega-marathons should benefit from them — not just absorb road closures, disruption, and economic activity that flows back out of the community.
05
Running leadership must reflect who actually runs — 34% of U.S. runners are people of color, and 1% of running industry senior management is Black. That gap is a policy choice.
06
Safe running infrastructure — lit paths, protected crosswalks, park access — is a racial and economic justice issue, not just a nice-to-have.
07
The brands that profit from running culture should be held to the same values we run by — including how they pay the athletes who wear their logos.
08
Being a runner is not a political statement — but the systems that decide who gets to run safely, affordably, and with dignity absolutely are.
Race Scorecard
The Splits
In running, your "splits" are your checkpoint times — the data that tells you whether you're on pace or falling behind. Every competitive runner runs the math obsessively: are you where you need to be at mile 10? Mile 18? Mile 26?
We're running that same math on the race industry itself. Entry fee vs. local minimum wage. Men's prize vs. women's prize vs. wheelchair division. Nonprofit status vs. executive pay. How are they doing at the checkpoints that actually matter? Select a race below and find out.
Race Equity Scorecard
Select a major marathon to see how it scores across access, equity, and accountability.
Data sourced from official race websites, BAA, NYRR, and Running USA. Prize figures reflect 2024–2025 open division. Entry fees reflect 2025 general registration. Local minimum wage figures used where applicable.
Data & Research
The Rundown
The numbers the running industry would rather bury in a press release about "community investment."
Access & Cost
$315
NYC Marathon entry fee for non-NYRR-members in 2025
= 43 hours at federal minimum wage ($7.25/hr)
$5.2B
Economic impact injected by the top 50 marathons worldwide
Brand Finance / World Marathon Majors, 2024
3×
Increase in London Marathon international entry fee in two years
£73 (2023) → £225 (2025)
$683M
Chicago Marathon's record economic impact in 2024 — for a city, not a charity
Chicago Event Management, 2024 — a for-profit organizer
400K+
Applicants compete for ~38,000 spots in the Tokyo Marathon lottery
Tokyo Marathon Foundation, 2024
44%
Price increase for international runners at Tokyo in 2026 ($160 → $230)
Tokyo Marathon Foundation announcement, 2025
Prize Equity
73%
Less prize money Boston wheelchair winners get vs. open division winners
$40K wheelchair vs. $150K open — BAA 2024
1
Major marathon that has equalized prize money for wheelchair and open athletes
London Marathon, 2024 — the only one so far
$0
What NYC nonbinary division winner Cal Calamia received despite $5K being advertised
PinkNews / Sportico, 2024
$150K
Boston first-place prize (men and women equal) — the highest single-race prize of any Major
Boston Athletic Association, 2024
Leadership & Representation
1%
Of running industry senior management positions held by Black employees
Running Industry Diversity Coalition (RIDC), 2023
34%
Of U.S. runners identify as people of color
SFIA via RIDC — 16 million runners of color
59%
Of running organizations with DEI goals that don't track progress
Running Industry Diversity Coalition (RIDC), 2023
80%
Of senior DEI initiative leaders in the running industry who are white
RIDC Research, 2023
The Industry
$53B
Global running shoe market revenue annually
Custom Market Insights, 2024
41%
Global athletic footwear market share held by Nike
Straits Research, 2024
70%
Of running organizations that have DEI goals on paper
RIDC — but 59% don't track whether they're meeting them
£1B
Raised for charity by London Marathon since 1981 — a model worth replicating
London Marathon Events — the world's largest annual fundraising event