PHILADELPHIA (CBS) – The sold-out 19th annual Philadelphia Marathon is opening an additional 3,000 race registration slots for New York City Marathoners who were unable to compete in the cancelled race.

Mayor Michael Nutter made the announcement Tuesday stressing the offer is available only to marathoners who were previously registered for the November 4th NYC Marathon which was cancelled following the devastation of Hurricane Sandy.

Runners can enter a lottery beginning Wednesday, November 7th at 9 a.m. through Thursday, November 8th at 5 p.m.

“In the wake of Hurricane Sandy and the many challenges created by it, we are honored to welcome New York City marathon participants to Philadelphia,” said Mayor Michael Nutter. “We understand that marathoners have invested a great deal of time, training and dedication to prepare, and so we’ve decided that adding up to 3,000 competitors is something we can do to support the running community.”

Officials say the registration fee for the registered NYC Marathon runners is $200 and half of that will be donated to the American Red Cross Hurricane Relief Fund. The remaining will go towards additional supplies and resources needed to accommodate the extra runners in Philadelphia Marathon.

Eligible runners interested in entering the lottery and applying for the Philadelphia Marathon should visit www.philadelphiamarathon.com. Officials say to ensure fairness, a computerized lottery system will randomly select eligible runners to the fill the slots. Lottery selection will take place immediately after the lottery registration closes on Thursday, November 8th at 5 p.m. and those chosen will be notified by e-mail.