ABBOTT World Marathon Majors/ WANDA AGE GROUP QUALIFIER

The KLM Aruba Marathon has been chosen as one of the qualifying marathons for the Abbott World Marathon Majors Wanda Age Group World Championships in 2021. 
(The KLM Aruba Marathon is AIMS certified and sanctioned by the Aruba Athletic Federation and therefor also a "Boston Qualifier")

See below for the details and click below for more information on how it all works:

BECOME A WORLD CHAMPION IN YOUR OWN AGE GROUP…

• Qualifying period runs from Oct. 13 2020 – Oct. 11, 2021 
• One-year cycle for participants to earn up to two qualifying times and a place at the AbbottWMM Wanda Age Group World Championships in 2021.
• The Bank of America Chicago Marathon will mark the start and finish of the qualification period for the second year of the AbbottWMM Wanda Age Group World Rankings. The World Championships will take place in 2021 with the venue to be announced next year.
• Participants in an AbbottWMM Wanda Age Group World Ranking qualifying race will earn points according to their age, time and gender, aligned with the following age groups for men and women: 40-44, 45-49, 50-54, 55-59, 60-64, 65-69, 70-74, 75-79, 80+.

How it works;

The AbbottWMM Wanda Age Group World Rankings comprise a one-year qualifying period during which athletes in nine separate age groups can compete in marathons across the world to earn ranking points.

The inaugural rankings season began at the 2018 BMW BERLIN-MARATHON on Sept. 16, 2018 and ended at the 2019 BMW BERLIN-MARATHON on Sept. 29, 2019.

The second edition of the rankings began on Sept. 30 2019 and will end at the Bank of America Chicago Marathon on October 11, 2020. This rankings edition will determine who qualifies for the 2021 AbbottWMM Wanda Age Group World Championships.

At the end of the qualifying period, the top ranked runners in each age group will be invited to the AbbottWMM Wanda Age Group World Championships.

The first Championships will be held within the 2020 Virgin Money London Marathon. The date and location of the 2021 Championships will be announced in due course.

The rankings cover age groups from 40 to 80+ for men and women as follows 

• 40-44
• 45-49
• 50-54
• 55-59
• 60-64
• 65-69
• 70-74
• 75-79
• 80+

HOW TO SCORE POINTS 

The maximum points that can be scored in any race by an age group winner is 4,000. The age group winners in any AbbottWMM race – the Tokyo, Boston, Virgin Money London, BMW BERLIN, Bank of America Chicago and TCS New York City Marathons – will automatically get 4,000 points. The minimum amount of points that can be scored is 1,000. The best two results in marathons over this period will count for each runner’s ranking. 

Any age group athlete who is within 29 seconds of the age group winning time in an AbbottWMM race receives 10 points less, earning 3990 points. Runners within 30-59 seconds of the winning time receive 20 points less, and those earning times within 1 minute and 29 seconds less than the age group winning time receive 30 points less, and so on. 

Runners can earn points for their performances in marathons beyond the six AbbottWMM races, provided the event is an official AbbottWMM Wanda Age Group World Ranking qualifying race. 

In those events, scoring will be based on a platinum time calculated for each age group and gender, using standard multiples of the ‘mean’ of the current marathon world record times for each age group and gender. Winners of any age group marathons that are not Abbott World Marathon Races must run faster than the platinum time for their age and gender to score 4000 points. The same points degradation according to time behind the winner applies. The full list of the platinum times is included below. 

Runners’ qualifying times must be recorded at a certified accurate marathon which has been nominated as an AbbottWMM Wanda Age Group World Ranking qualifying race. The current list is included at the conclusion of this document. 

If the age group winning time is below the platinum time, then the points awarded to the winner and every subsequent age group runner are reduced by the time the age group winner has missed platinum time for the age and gender of the athlete.

Platinum times for each age group are as follows:

The second edition of the AbbottWMM Wanda Age Group World Rankings began on Sept. 30 2019 and will end at the 2020 Bank of America Chicago Marathon on Oct. 11.

The spread of the selected marathon events that are part of the AbbottWMM Wanda Agre Group World Rankings creates a truly global series throughout the year, giving runners across the world the chance to be part of a new era of age group marathon running.

Tim Hadzima, Executive Director of Abbott World Marathon Majors said:

“We are very excited about the response to the AbbottWMM Wanda Age Group World Rankings from marathons around the world. More than 125,000 runners aged 40+ participate in Abbott WORLD MARATHON MAJORS races each year and this new system will allow even more runners to become a part of the Abbott WORLD MARATHON MAJORS family. Our system gives runners a chance to run all over the world and all across the calendar on a truly global stage. We want to give them a chance to gain recognition like never before.

“We are proud to be working with all our partners to take age group marathon running to the next level and showcase the achievements of these everyday champions.”

ABOUT ABBOTT WORLD MARATHON MAJORS

The Abbott World Marathon Majors (AbbottWMM) is a series of six of the largest and most renowned marathons in the world - Tokyo Marathon, B.A.A. Boston Marathon, Virgin Money London Marathon, BMW BERLIN-MARATHON, Bank of America Chicago Marathon and TCS New York City Marathon. 

Encompassing an annual series for elite runners and elite wheelchair athletes, AbbottWMM also applauds the achievements and passion of everyday champions from around the world. The new AbbottWMM Six Star System is an online results hub that celebrates every runner who has completed from one to six of the races in the series and encourages them to 'Reach for The Stars'.

The AbbottWMM has also launched AbbottWMM Wanda Age Group World Rankings - our first ever global age group marathon ranking system. Qualifying begins in Berlin in September 2018 and will include more than 50 races across the world. The rankings will culminate at the first AbbottWMM Wanda Age Group World Championship race taking place in spring 2020. 

For more information,visit www.Abbottwmm.com