The New York City Marathon celebrates its 50th anniversary on Sunday as more than 60,000 runners will descend on the five-borough course.
While many will be keeping an eye out for celebrities and individuals with inspirational tales, the elite fields are stacked with supreme talent who will be battling for glory in the city that never sleeps.
In the women's field, defending champion Hellen Obiri returns to defend her crown and the Kenyan is the odds-on favourite to triumph.
The two-time winner, who last year broke Margaret Okayo’s 2003 course record with her seismic run of 2:19:51, has the opportunity to join an exclusive club of athletes to win the New York City marathon on three occasions: Grete Waitz (9 wins), Mary Keitany (4) and Paula Radcliffe (3).
There is no Olympic champion Sifan Hassan in the field, who was forced to withdraw due to illness, but Obiri still faces stern competition from 2024 champion Sheila Chepkirui and Viola Cheptoo, who have both ran under 2:20 this year.
Boston fourth-place finisher Mary Chelangat is third in the betting, ahead of home favourite Jessica McClain, who finished one place behind her in Massachusetts.
While the women's betting market favours Obiri, the men's field is wide open.
Defending champion Benson Kipruto and 10,000m European champion Andreas Almgren dispute favouritism, while Deresa Geleta of Ethiopia is also a single figure price.
Kipruto is aiming to become the first male to win the New York City Marathon back-to-back since John Kagwe in 1998 after he pipped Alexander Mutiso on the line by just three hundredths of a second in last year's race.
Almgren's evolution from an 800m runner has been staggering. The Swede broke the 10,000m European Championship record in Birmingham in August before breaking another European record in the half marathon last month, running 58:06 on his way to the title at the World Athletics Road Running Championships in Copenhagen.
New York will mark Almgren's marathon debut, and he's predicting a time of around 2:07.
Geleta is the second-fastest man in the field having posted a time of 2:02:38 earlier this year, and he will be making his first appearance in New York City.
New York City Marathon odds
Men's
Women's
(Odds will display when markets are available).
