Guaranteed entry through a charity means you can secure your spot in a major marathon—without needing to qualify or secure a bib through the lottery—by joining an official charity team. Charities like the Children’s Brain Tumor Project Foundation receive a limited number of race bibs from event organizers, and runners who commit to raising a set fundraising minimum earn one of these guaranteed entries. It’s a meaningful way to participate in world-class races while directly supporting life-changing research.

If you cannot participate in your race for any reason and you have already signed an agreement with our charity to reach a fundraising minimum, we require that you still raise the minimum amount. This is because current race partners do not allow athletes or charity partners to transfer bibs after registration.

However, every race is different and most have clauses that allow for cancellation or deferral due to injury or unexpected conflicts within a certain timeframe. A deferral means the athlete still raises the fundraising minimum, but they can postpone their race over the course of the next year or two. If an athlete decides to cancel altogether, registration fees are non-refundable, and any money that was already raised for the charity cannot be refunded.

The fundraising minimum varies per race. For most marathons, our minimum fundraising requirement is $5,000, and half-marathons are usually $1,500 – $2,000. These vary, however, depending on how costly it is for the charity to purchase the bibs in the first place. It may also vary depending on how much demand there is for a particular race.

If you don’t meet your fundraising minimum, you are required to pay the difference via personal check or credit card.

Each individual team member is responsible for coordinating and paying for their own registration. Once an agreement is signed, athletes will receive an individual code from the charity, which allows them to claim their bib and complete the registration process.

Team meet-ups are encouraged but never required. We always try to capture group photos when possible—usually by coordinating through our race-day group chat—but with thousands of participants and staggered start times, it can be tricky! Our teams range in size from just a few international runners to around 20 participants at larger events like the NYC Marathon, so connecting in advance helps. We encourage everyone to get to know each other during training and to use the group chat for arranging meet-ups, sharing training tips, and providing race-day support.

Yes! As long as we receive your request at least four weeks in advance, we can customize your race shirt. We often print your first name on the front of your marathon singlet, and we are open to adding other customized print requests (or color requests) if we have enough time to coordinate with our vendor.