RACES IN CHICAGO, PRAGUE ANNOUNCE SOLD OUT FIELDS
By David Monti
(c) 2012 Race Results Weekly, all rights reserved (Used by permission)

(08-Feb) -- Two big road races on separate continents announced that they have filled their fields in record time, further evidence that the demand for road racing entries continues to be strong.

In the United States, the organizers of the Bank of America Chicago Marathon, scheduled for Sunday, October 7, announced that their base entry cap of 45,000 runners was reached in just six days, the fastest ever for America's second-largest marathon, part of the five-race World Marathon Majors series.

"What a way to begin the 35th anniversary Bank of America Chicago Marathon with our field filling up in record time," executive race director Carey Pinkowski said through a statement. "It is truly a testament to the first-class experience we provide to each and every runner on the streets of Chicago."

To put the six-day sellout in perspective, Chicago officials pointed out that the same entry cap took 35 weeks to reach in 2003, and 31 days last year. Additional entries will be sold through the race's 90+ affiliated charities, which will ultimately bring the entry number up to about 49,000. Last year's race recorded 35,671 finishers.

In Europe, organizers of the Hervis Prague Half-Marathon, scheduled for Saturday, March 31, reported similarly good news, albeit on a smaller scale. Carlo Capalbo, president of the event's organizing committee reported that a record 11,000 entries had been sold 53 days prior to race day, an increase of 22% from last year. Last year's race did not fill up until about 20 days prior to the event.

"Not only have we filled the pole positions so early on but also proven that we can attract a further two thousand runners compared to last year," Capalbo said through a news release. "It's a fantastic success story."

The race in Prague has shown incredible growth. In 2005 the race had a respectable 2744 finishers, but number grew by 163% to 7229 last year. Just 950 runners took part in the inaugural edition of the event in 1999.

"We are coming close to reaching the maximum in terms of capacity and possibilities," Capalbo added. "After consulting with the police, magistrate and television, for safety reasons we know that a maximum of twelve thousand people can run the half-marathon in the center of Prague."

Both the Bank of America Chicago Marathon and Hervis Prague Half-Marathon are IAAF Gold Label road races.