Boston
Lelisa Desisa of Ethiopia crosses the finish line to win the men's division of the 199th Boston Marathon in Boston, April 20, 2015. Reuters/Brian Snyder

It’s a race known for pushing runners with the infamous elevation challenge of Heartbreak Hill between miles 20 and 21. Last year’s Boston Marathon winner on the men's side, Lelisa Desisa of Ethiopia completed the race with a time of two hours nine minutes and 17 seconds while Caroline Rotich of Kenya won the women’s side with a time of two hours 24 minutes and 55 seconds. Here’s how you can check the times and results of the world’s top runners plus family and friends who are taking on the 26.2 mile stretch.

The Boston Athletic Association, which organizes the race that dates back to 1897 (although women did not officially begin participating until 1972), will post official results and times on its website. You can follow runners along the course by using the Boston Marathon app that can be downloaded here.

The race begins at 8:50 a.m. EDT with the mobility-impaired participants. They are followed by the men’s push-rim wheelchair participants at 9:17 a.m. EDT and the women’s push-rim wheelchair participants at 9:19 a.m. EDT. Up next at 9:22 a.m. EDT are the handcyclers and then the elite women take off at 9:32 a.m. EDT. That means that shortly after 11 a.m. the winner of the women’s division will be announced.

The elite men and the first wave take off at 10 a.m. EDT meaning the men’s division winner should be announced around noon. Waves two, three and four take off every 25 minutes after the first wave. The final finish line crossers will complete the race in the late afternoon with runners averaging finish times between three to five hours.

Approximately 30,000 runners are participating in this year’s marathon. To qualify for the race, you must already be a strong runner. The qualifying time for the 18 to 34 age group for men is three hours and five minutes and for women it is three hours and 35 minutes. You must be at least 18 years old to participate in the Boston Marathon with participants over 80 years old running the long haul.

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