By Al Novack And Jericka Duncan

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) – On Sunday morning, 40,000 athletes laced up their shoes, limbered up, and prepared to tackle the Broad Street Run, a 10-Mile race that cuts through the middle of the city.

The men’s winner, Henry Rutto, finished the race with an unofficial time of 47 minutes flat.

The women’s winner, Esther Erb, finished in about 56 minutes.

The men’s wheelchair race winner, Tony Nogueira, is also the race record-holder. This is his 9th Broad Street Race win.

The female wheelchair winner is Chelsea Chrysler.

Runners kicked off at Central High School Athletic Field, then headed past City Hall, and then off to the finish line on South Broad at the Navy Yard.

For the first time this year spectators could track where runners are and have the information sent to their phones.

“I’m tracking my wife and several of her friends and looks like they just reached the half-way mark,” said Ken Bullwinkle of Morton, Pennsylvania.

From Broad and Fisher to Spring Garden and beyond, this 10 mile trek has less to do with miles, and more to do with the motivating factors behind every step.

Jamie Ford of New Jersey says her father has brain cancer. She and her friend Nicola are running for him and all the people they know battling some form of the deadly disease.

Eyewitness News reporter Walt Hunter participated in the event. He says running down the longest street in Philadelphia brings back many memories.

“I was born in Olney ,family from South Philly and Logan,” said Hunter. “It’s like a hometown picnic except everyone’s running!

The race was to be capped at 30,000 runners, but sky-high demand had organizers added an extra 10,000 spots.

This year’s race sold out in record time — less than five hours.