The New York City Marathon scheduled for Sunday has been cancelled tonight amid growing criticism that staging the event would drain resources from an area reeling in the wake of Hurricane Sandy.
"While holding the race would not require diverting resources from the recovery effort, it is clear that it has become the source of controversy and division," Mayor Michael Bloomberg and the New York Road Runners, which organises the race, said in a statement.
"The marathon has always brought our city together and inspired us with stories of courage and determination," they added in the statement.
"We would not want a cloud to hang over the race or its participants, and so we have decided to cancel it."
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Bloomberg