Live updates: The 130th Boston Marathon

Rain or shine, frigid or sweltering: It's time for the 130th Boston Marathon.

Athletes are flooding onto Hopkinton town common this morning as they prepare to tackle whatever New England's fickle spring weather throws at them

Meteorologist Danielle Noyes expects today to be a chilly and windy day — perhaps ideal for a runner. There's only a small chance of showers. But if you're out cheering on the runners, you'll want to dress in layers and maybe bring a hat.

Check out our full marathon guide to learn everything you need to know before setting out to watch the runners in the prestigious race.

8:45 a.m. 

This year's roster of elite marathon runners is being called the strongest field in race history.

A year after shattering the women’s mark by more than 2 1/2 minutes, Sharon Lokedi is fit and could push for a second straight course record — if she decides to go for it.

Reigning men’s champion and fellow Kenyan John Korir also is back to lead a field of more than 30,000 on the 26.2-mile race to Boston’s Copley Square.

Cool weather and an expected tailwind will greet them in Hopkinton — perhaps the ideal conditions for more fast times like last year, when Lokedi finished in 2 hours, 17 minutes, 22 seconds to break the 11-year-old course record and deprive runner-up Hellen Obiri of a third straight win. Korir's 2:04:45 was the third-fastest ever as he joined his brother to become a Boston Marathon champion.

“Last year was crazy fast, so I don’t know if it will be the same thing this year. But whichever one, I’m excited for,” Lokedi said this week as she prepared to defend her title. “You never know. I feel like that is always determined by when you get to the start line.”

The entire men’s podium and seven of the top 10 finishers from last year are back, including runners with three of the top eight times in race history. Eight women in the field have run a sub-2:20 marathon — times that would have been a course record in Boston until a year ago.

“Yeah, it’s stacked,” American competitor Alex Maier said.

The Americans are showing their strength as well.

There are 12 U.S. men with personal bests below 2:10. Four — including 2017 Boston runner-up Galen Rupp and last year's seventh-place finisher, Clayton Young — have run 2:08 or faster; those would be Boston bests until Geoffrey Mutai's then-world best of 2:03:02 in 2011.

Two of the three American women who competed in the 2024 Paris Olympics and last year’s world championships are in the field. (Fiona O'Keeffe dropped out on Sunday with a hamstring issue). In all, seven U.S. women have beaten 2:25 and three have personal bests below 2:22 — Emily Sisson, Sara Hall and Susanna Sullivan.

“I am just so honored to be a part of this growth in women’s U.S. distance running, especially in the marathon,” said Jess McClain, who was the top American woman last year, running the fourth-fastest time ever for a U.S. woman in Boston. “It just makes us all so much better. So yeah, it’s a very special moment.”

— Jimmy Golen, The Associated Press

Here's the full schedule of race start times:

The wheelchair racers will start to cross the finish line around 10:15 a.m.; the pro runners will start to reach Boylston Street after 11:30 a.m.

To find a loved one or a favorite athlete, head to the Boston Athletic Association's website and enter their name, bib number or other info. You could then track their live progress during the race on the BAA's mobile app.

Today is a state holiday — Patriots' Day — marking the start of the Revolutionary War with the battles of Lexington and Concord. Here's what's open and closed on the holiday.

The Red Sox play the Detroit Tigers at Fenway at 11:10 a.m. today.