Scoring System

Athletes earn points by placing among the top five in Qualifying Races during the two-year period. Points are allocated following each race as follows:

1st place 25 points
2nd place 15 points
3rd place 10 points
4th place 5 points
5th place 1 point

During each two-year scoring period, points from a maximum of four Qualifying Races will be scored. If an athlete earns points in more than four events, the athlete’s best four finishes will be scored. In order to qualify, an athlete must compete in at least one Qualifying Race during each calendar year of a scoring period.

In the event of a tie, the first tiebreaker will be a review of any head-to-head competitions between the contending athletes during the series. The athlete finishing first in that head-to-head competition will be declared the winner. If the athletes remain tied after the head-to-head competition review, the final tiebreaker will be a majority vote of the five World Marathon Majors Race Directors.

The scoring system makes all World Marathon Majors events equal in terms of the athletes’ pursuit of the grand prize jackpot and acknowledges that all marathon courses are not the same. The scoring system is based on points, rather than on performance times or strength of competition, to take into account the unique challenges involved in performing well over a sustained period of time. The winner of the World Marathon Majors series unquestionably will be the best performer during the competition period.