Abbot Health & Fitness Expo for 2024 Chicago Marathon begins: Hours, swag, packet pick-up and more

NOTE: Streaming of race day coverage and a finish line camera will appear live here beginning Oct. 13

More than 50,000 runners will hit the streets Sunday for the 2024 Bank of America Chicago Marathon. But before they pound the pavement, they’ll need to pick up their packets, and perhaps grab some swag along the way.

The Abbott Health & Fitness Expo at Chicago’s McCormick Place kicks off Thursday. The event not only serves as packet and participant bag pick-up, but offers runners — and the public — the chance to cruise through running vendors, grab Chicago marathon swag and more.

When is the Abbott Health & Fitness Expo?

Thursday, October 10

11 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Friday, October 11

9 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Saturday, October 12

9 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Times are subject to change.

Where is the expo?

Lakeside Center, Hall D
2301 S. Martin Luther King Drive*
Chicago, IL 6061

What’s in the packets and participant bags?

Participant packet items include:

• Bib number* and safety pins
• MYLAPS ThinTag timing device
• Gear check tag
• Nike participant running shirt
• Participant bag

*Registered participants age 21 and over will receive a tag on their bib number redeemable for one beer following the race.

Runners will also be offered a memorial sticker that can be added to bibs honoring late world record holder Kelvin Kiptum, who won the 2023 race just months before he died in car crash.

What else is at the expo?

According to organizers, the expo will feature more than 160 exhibitors offering merchandise alongside new running footwear, apparel, nutrition and technology.

The three-day Expo is free and open to the public.

Peek at the swag inside

Take a sneak peek of the 2024 Chicago Marathon swag inside the Abbott Health & Fitness Expo. Photos by NBC Chicago’s George Mycyk.