In a matter of weeks runners will take over Chicago streets to race in the 2024 Bank of America Chicago Marathon, but they'll have to complete the 26.2-mile course in a certain amount of time to finish.

Participants in the marathon have six hours and 30 minutes to finish the course. The official end vehicle will start following the last starter and will maintain a 15-minute per-mile pace along the course.

Runners, therefore, must maintain a 15-minute per mile pace or faster to complete the marathon within the event time requirement. Participants who run outside of that limit may not be recorded as official finishers of the marathon. They also may not receive on-course support from aid stations, traffic safety personnel, or be allowed to complete the marathon, according to the event rules.

In 2023, the average time for men to finish a marathon was 4:14:29 and 4:42:09 for women, according to Verywell Fit. If you've been training for a marathon and don't know what to expect, try aiming for the average times.

Records for both the men's and women's Chicago Marathon were each set in 2023. Kenya's Kelvin Kiptum broke the world record by running 2:00:35, defeating Eliud Kipchoge's previous record by 30 seconds. Tragically, Kiptum died in a car accident shortly after the race in February 2024.

The Netherlands' Sifan Hassan set a new course record for the Chicago Marathon in 2023, running 2:13:44. That time still stands as the second-fastest marathon time in women's history, trailing Ethiopia's Tigist Assefa's 2:11:53 from the Berlin Marathon in 2023.

MORE: Could the women's American marathon record fall at this year's Chicago Marathon?