2022 TCS New York City Marathon is the 1st sporting event to be declared Safe Space by Stonewall Inn

NEW YORK (WABC) -- The 2022 TCS New York City Marathon has been named a Safe Space by the historic Stonewall Inn.

It's the first sporting event to receive the designation from the bar, the original safe space for the LGBTQ+ community.

The Stonewall Inn Gives Back Initiative developed a certification process that includes instituting policies and standards to ensure an organization is serving LGBTQ+ staff and customers, and advocating for equality.

New York Road Runners and The Stonewall Inn held a commemorative event to celebrate the certification Friday morning.

The designation is based off of 10 criteria suggested by members of the LGBTQ+ community.

"It's making sure that there's access to gender neutral bathrooms, it's making sure that you support the community, not just in June, but 365 days a year," said co-founder of the Stonewall Inn Gives Back Initiative Stacy Lentz.

The race is allowing runners to select 'X' for gender instead of male or female.

"To be able to see the X next to my name, it's really such a fantastic opportunity, I feel so affirmed and such an honor," said J Solle who is running their first marathon.

Zackary Harris won in the first ever non-binary category last year and will run with an even bigger group Sunday.

"I certainly hope the next generation sees running as the sport that is inclusive of their identities and sees it as a safe space for them to come and be who they are," Harris said.

The modern LGBTQ+ rights movement was born at the Stonewall Inn in Greenwich Village on a steamy summer night in 1969 when patrons of the Christopher Street bar resisted NYPD harassment that night, with the casting of the "first brick" leading to protests and violent clashes with police that lasted for days.

The uprising sent a message to the world that members of the LGBTQ+ community would no longer tolerate being targeted or ostracized.

The bar was designated as a national monument in 2016.

WATCH: Eyewitness News special: The story of the Stonewall Inn

RELATED: More coverage of the 2022 TCS New York City Marathon

HOW TO WATCH THE TCS NEW YORK CITY MARATHON

Marathon Day in New York is coming up November 6th! The TCS New York City Marathon will be broadcast to more than 530 million homes around the world, with a Spanish language broadcast being produced nationwide for the first time by ESPN.

WABC-TV and ESPN2 have been home to the award-winning broadcast of the world's largest marathon since 2013.

It will be the first Spanish-language broadcast of any marathon to air on ESPN Deportes, airing live on ESPN3 and the App from 8:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m., and then will re-air on ESPN Deportes from 8:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. EST.

Joining the talent team for this year's domestic broadcast will be five-time TCS New York City Marathon champion and 13-time Paralympic medalist Kurt Fearnley and running reporter Chris Chavez. Fearnley will be in the broadcast booth as a race analyst for all four professional divisions, and Chavez will make his broadcast debut on the men's moto. John Anderson, Lewis Johnson, three-time Olympian and former American record-holder Deena Kastor, Sage Steele, and Olympian Carrie Tollefson will round out the national talent.

The group will be joined by a talented array of reporters at the start, finish, along the course, and in the sky, including ABC7's Eyewitness News reporters Ryan Field, Sam Ryan, Anthony Johnson, Kemberly Richardson, Michelle Charlesworth, Lee Goldberg, Brittany Bell, and Josh Einiger.

The broadcast, produced in coordination with 45 Live and distributed by IMG, will air on ABC7/WABC-TV and ESPN2 from 8:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. EST. Pre-race coverage from Fort Wadsworth begins at 7:00 a.m. EST.

The race will also stream live on the ESPN App nationally from 8:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. EST.

Pre-race and continuing coverage will also be streamed live nationally on ESPN3 (accessible on the ESPN App and ESPN.com) from 7:00 a.m. to 8:30 a.m. and from 11:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. ESPN3 will present a view of the finish line from 9:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. EST.

A two-hour encore presentation of the race broadcast will air on ABC affiliates around the country from 3:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. EST.

The international broadcast will include three-time TCS New York City Marathon champion and four-time British Olympian Paula Radcliffe providing race analysis, alongside veteran track and field commentator Paul Swangard.

International broadcast partners secured by IMG for the race include: FloSports (Australia, Canada, United Kingdom), ESPN Brasil (Brazil), SMG Sports (China), Eurosport (Pan Europe, Pan Asia, India), L'Equipe (France), RAI (Italy), TV Asahi (Japan), Sky Mexico (Mexico), NOS (Netherlands), Sky (New Zealand), SuperSport (Sub-Saharan Africa), ESPN International (South America), and TVE and TV3 (Spain).