12,000-Plus Runners Ready For 89th Manchester Road Race

MANCHESTER, CT — The biggest fields in recent memory — at least since the pandemic — is ready for "Thanksgiving in Manchester" and the 89th running of the Manchester Road Race.

The race stopes off at 10 a.m.

Registration for the iconic Thanksgiving Day run closed completely at 11:59 Tuesday night. The Manchester Road Race Committee announced Wednesday morning that 12,385 runners (and walkers) have entered the event.

No post entries will be accepted on race day. Registered runners who have not yet picked up their bibs were doing so Wednesday from 3 to 7 p.m. at the Cone Gymnasium of the Bennet Academy.

The race is run on a 4.737-mile loop course that starts and finishes on Main Street in Manchester, in front of St. James Church. More than 30,000 spectators are expected to line the race course to view the parade of runners, who range in ability from Olympians to skilled recreational runners to families to joggers dressed in costumes.

Registration came close in 2024, when 12,127 runners signed up for the event. But. due to the rainy, 39-degree weather on race day, the number of official finishers last year was 8,384.

Because of the large volume of people and traffic expected in the central area of Manchester during the event, the race committee is offering free shuttle bus service to and from the race from the parking lot of the Connecticut Community College Manchester (formerly Manchester Community College) early Thursday. More details are available at www.manchesterroadrace.com.

The road race, which is one of America’s oldest and most celebrated Thanksgiving Day runs, will be broadcast live on television starting at 9 a.m. by Fox 61 TV, and on radio by WTIC NewsTalk 1080.

Defending champions Andrew Colley of Blowing Rock, NC and Weini Kelati of Flagstaff, AZ have both entered the race.

Colley won last November in a time of 21:09. Kelati, an Olympian who will be seeking a record fifth consecutive Manchester win, captured the women's competition with a time of 23:14.

The MRR course record of 21:04 was set in 2022 by Olympian Conner Mantz. Kelati authored the women's mark of 22:55 during her first appearance in the Silk City in 2021.

Also running Thursday will be three-time Olympian Jenny Simpson. Simpson, who recently retired from the competitive track circuit, won the bronze medal in the 1,500 meters at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympic Games. She is currently traveling to road races in each of the 50 states with her husband, marathoner Jason Simpson, on a "Run USA" tour.

This year's MRR will literally be a race against hunger. Race organizers have designated MACC Charities and Connecticut Foodshare as the recipients of the event's unallocated net proceeds.

The Manchester Road Race is organized by 400 volunteers of the Manchester Road Race Committee, with support from the town of Manchester. The event's Principal Sponsors are Hartford HealthCare, Hoffman Lexus, Orthopedic Associates of Hartford and Pratt & Whitney.

Patti Dillon of Windham, a pioneer of women's road racing who set many world and national records and was the first American female to run the marathon in a time under 2:30, is serving as the event's honorary chairperson.

Additional information about the 89th Manchester Road Race is available at www.manchesterroadrace.com.