BUFFALO, NY – “We’re ready,” said Greg Weber, Race Director of the annual Buffalo Marathon, which begins with the full marathon starting at 6:30 a.m. Sunday.
Some 6,500 runners are expected to partake in the full and half-marathons during what is Buffalo’s premier running event.
The course involves streets through parts of downtown, up into North Buffalo, and the city’s waterfront area.
The race has attracted runners from 43 states including Alaska and Hawaii, as well as ten different countries including Japan, Egypt, Brazil Great Britain and Australia according to Weber.
“It's incredible when you talk to people at the hotel about where they come from and why,” Weber told 2 On Your Side.
The course is the same it's been for five years, so the usual traffic restrictions will be in place even prior to the start at 6:30 Sunday morning, and will remain in effect for much of the day.
One new feature this year will be fireworks to celebrate the first and final finishers of the marathon.
“Running is such an individual sport, but it's all about supporting one another when you are out on the course," said Weber. “And to stand at the finish line and watch for two or three hours when people achieve their accomplishment which they been training for 10 weeks, 20 weeks, or 30 weeks is really moving."