The 35th edition of the Maine Community Bank Maine Marathon, Half Marathon and Marathon Relay takes place Sunday on the streets of Portland, Falmouth, Cumberland and Yarmouth, beginning at 7:45 a.m.

The largest marathon in Maine, the overall field is approaching 5,500 entries — well above last year’s record of 5,144.

“I’m limiting the growth to about 400 runners per year,” said Bob Dunfey, the volunteer race director.

The Maine Marathon and its participants have raised over $8,900,000 for charity. The event donates about 40% of revenue toward a variety of charities. Last year, donations totaled $793,285. Each year, the race picks three to five “designated charities.” This year’s beneficiaries are Nanna’s House, Day One, Camp No Limits, and the Pine Tree Society. Many other groups benefit from fundraising done by runners.

Here are key details about the Maine Marathon.

Start/finish: The marathon and half marathon start simultaneously on Baxter Boulevard in Portland. Both races also finish there.

Course: Essentially out-and-back. The course curls around Portland’s Back Cove, works it way to Route 1 North and then veers onto Route 88. The 26.2-mile marathon course goes through Falmouth and Cumberland before reaching the 12-mile mark in Yarmouth. Runners turn right onto Gilman Road, then another right onto Princes Point road to begin a roughly 3-mile loop to get back to Route 88, where they’ll head south on their return. The 13.1-mile half marathon follows the same route until it gets to a turnaround just past scenic Mussel Cove in Falmouth.

Event records: Men’s marathon — Ryan Eiler, Boston, 2 hours, 19 minutes, 19 seconds (2022); Women’s marathon — Abby Hamilton, Yarmouth, 2:39:38 (2021); Men’s half marathon — Colin Cernik, Portland, 1:04:39 (2025); Women’s half marathon, Cliodhna O’Malley, Windham, 1:15:06 (2025).

Prize money: The top male, female and non-binary runners earn $1,000 for the marathon and $500 for the half marathon, with cash through fifth place in each gender group if the runner meets the elite standard. Prizes are also available for a new event record in the marathon ($500) and half marathon ($250).

Top runners: The 2025 marathon winners, Sammy Mills of Portland and Emma Howe of Cambridge, Massachusetts, are not entered to defend their titles. The fastest local runners have migrated to the half marathon, including defending champions and event record holders Cernik and O’Malley. There are as many as 10 runners capable of challenging Cernik’s men’s record. The women’s half marathon features the past four winners — O’Malley, Phoebe Oehmig (2024), Veronica Graziano (2023) and Alyson Ursiny (2022). Megan O’Neil of Rochester, Michigan, is a serious threat. O’Neil ran a 2:31 at the Boston Marathon this spring, finishing 20th overall.

New this year: There will be lactation tents for the benefit of nursing mothers at the start/finish, and also near the 12- and 15-mile marks on the marathon course. … Instead of a starter’s gun or boat horn, the start of the chip-timed races will be signaled by a series of musical notes.

Race packet pickup: The runner’s expo on Saturday is at a new location. Runners can pick up their racing bib and T-shirt at Innovation Hall on the University of New England’s Portland campus from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Numerous vendors will be at the expo.

Race registrations: Dunfey said entries have come from 49 states (only North Dakota is missing), as well as Washington, D.C., the U.S. Virgin Island, Puerto Rico, the Northern Mariana Islands, and 15 foreign countries. As of 3 p.m. Thursday, registration was still open but fast approaching the 5,500 cap.