The competition would have been organized on November 1, but today the organizers announced that they, together with the mayor's staff, had made the decision to cancel the race, which last year attracted 53,640 participants.

The reason is the progress of the corona virus.

- Although the marathon competition is an iconic and beloved event in our city, I applaud the organizers for putting the health and safety of our spectators and runners first, says Mayor Bill de Blasio on the competition's website.

This year's edition of the race would have been the 50th.

"Setting up this year's New York Marathon is a big disappointment for everyone involved, but it became clear after a while that we needed to take it from a health and safety perspective," organizer New York Road Runners CEO Michael Capiraso said.

ARCHIVE: Not everyone is stopped by canceled races - this one who ran the Boston Marathon alone (April 21):

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