Points chase begins with Boston Marathon

BOSTON – There’s a difference between the Masters and the Southern Farm Bureau Classic, between the French Open and the country club championship, between the Kentucky Derby and the eighth race at Aqueduct.

For marathoners, there have always been courses that stood out for their prestige, tradition and purse. Starting in Boston today, those races are now the World Marathon Majors.

“The whole point is to be the best runner in the world,” Olympic silver medalist Meb Keflezighi said as he prepared to make his debut in the Boston Marathon and try to take the early lead in a two-year competition for bragging rights – and a $500,000 bonus.

Joining marathons in London, Berlin, New York, Chicago and Boston, the World Marathon Majors will award points and $1 million in prize money to the world’s top man and woman at the 26.2-mile distance over two years.

“(Today) is the start of two races,” New York City Marathon director Mary Wittenberg said. “One of the races will be over in 2 1/2 hours. The other race – to be the world’s greatest marathoner – won’t be over for 18 months.”

Marathons have a devoted but relatively small following that keeps the sport from reaping billion-dollar TV deals and more lucrative licensing fees. The splintered structure also leaves races competing for runners and attention.

So the five races looked to the mainstream sports for a system that will reward athletes for long-term consistency instead of one day of greatness. The circuit also creates other marketing and promotional opportunities that weren’t available to them previously.

“We feel like we’re at a different level, and we felt we have an obligation to bring the sport into the future,” Boston director Guy Morse said.

In coming up with a point system, organizers of the marathons looked to other sports to see how it was done. Of special interest was NASCAR’s new Chase for the Championship, which made a mini-circuit out of a yearlong season.

“Our attention ebbs and tides,” Chicago executive race director Carey Pinkowski said. “We looked to the mainstream sports and how they stay in front of the audience.”

But while horses can run three times in five weeks and cars every weekend, humans usually run no more than two marathons a year – one in the spring and one in the fall.

Organizers knew two races wasn’t enough to crown a true champion, so they came up with a two-year cycle, overlapping so that a bonus will be awarded each fall starting in 2007.

Runners get 25 points for winning a race, decreasing to 15, 10, 5 and 1 point for fifth place.