Philadelphia Marathon opens doors to NYC entrants

The sold-out Philadelphia Marathon will open to an additional 3,000 race participants who were registered but unable to compete in the canceled New York Marathon, Mayor Michael A. Nutter announced Tuesday.

New York City race competitors can enter a lottery to register for the 19th annual Philadelphia Marathon, beginning Wednesday, Nov. 7th at 9 a.m. EST and ending Thursday, November, 8th at 5 p.m. EST. Mayor Nutter stresses that the offer is available only to marathoners previously registered for the November 4th New York City Marathon.

The New York event was canceled in the 11th hour as organizers bowed to public pressure following Hurricane Sandy. It was the first cancelation in the race's 42-year history.

The Philadelphia Marathon will be run on Sunday, Nov. 18.

"In the wake of Hurricane Sandy and the many challenges created by it, we are honored to welcome New York City marathon participants to Philadelphia," Nutter said in a statement. "We understand that marathoners have invested a great deal of time, training and dedication to prepare, and so we've decided that adding up to 3,000 competitors is something we can do to support the running community."

The registration fee for the registered NYC Marathon runners is $200. Half of the registration fee will be donated to the Hurricane Relief Fund for the American Red Cross, while the remaining funds cover additional Philadelphia Marathon supplies and resources needed to accommodate the extra marathoners.

Eligible New York marathoners interested in applying for the Philadelphia Marathon should visit www.philadelphiamarathon.com. To ensure fairness, a computerized lottery system will randomly select up to 3,000 New York City Marathon competitors to participate in the Philadelphia Marathon. Lottery selection will take place immediately after the Thursday, November 8th deadline (5 p.m. EST), and those chosen will be notified by e-mail.

Last Friday, Nov. 2, Philadelphia Marathon organizers extended an invitation to New York City Marathon registrants to sign up through Philadelphia Marathon's charity partners. About 350 did so through the Philadelphia Marathon website, using all the remaining charity openings.

Mayor Nutter and race officials also encouraged the general public to donate to Hurricane Sandy relief efforts. To make a donation, contact the American Red Cross Disaster Relief or visit Generocity, a Philadelphia Marathon fundraising platform partner, at www.generocity.org/philadelphia-marathon. Click on "Start a Fundraiser" to create a personalized online fundraiser to easily invite family and friends to give. When prompted, runners can select "American Red Cross" as the benefiting nonprofit organization.