CHICAGO (WLS) — With less than a day until the start of the 47th Bank of America Chicago Marathon on Sunday, runners from near and far took over the Windy City.

McCormick Place buzzed with activity on Saturday as it played host to the Health and Fitness Expo.

ABC7 Chicago is now streaming 24/7. Click here to watch

“Feeling great,” Chicago runner Miles Mulder said. “I’ve been training hard with Second City Track Club here. Super excited to get it done. First one.”

Participants explored the expo, snapping pre-race photos, browsing the latest running gear, and leaving motivational notes for themselves and fellow competitors as they geared up for the 26.2-mile journey through the heart of Chicago.

“I’m feeling prepared,” Indianapolis runner Emily Stochel said. “I’ve struggled with a little bit of an injury the last two weeks, so fingers crossed I get to the finish line.”

Indianapolis’ Stochel and Annette Fearnot are lacing up for their first Bank of America Chicago Marathon. They’ve both run marathons before and say the the friendships made along the way keep them moving.

“Honestly I really enjoy the friendships,” Fearnot said. “Through running we have just met people all over the country and it keeps us going. We have people coming today to watch us from Atlanta and Texas.”

Some 53,000 runners will take on the scenic endurance run of Chicago, exploring 29 of the city’s neighborhoods. They are coming from every state and more than 100 countries.

Salt Lake City’s Jacob Archate is trying to break a Guinness World Record.

“For running the fastest marathon in a male astronaut suit,” Archate said.

He’s running in a space suit, which requires a little more training. He says he’s doing it to bring attention to issues affecting everyone around the world.

“That’s why I’m running in this suit. We don’t need to go to space to solve real out of this world problems,” Archate said. “It’s a lot of training uphill and and in the mountains. I trained a lot in a full on Nike dry suit.”

READ MORE | Chicago Marathon expo opens at McCormick Place as runners gear up for race day

Regardless of the reason, the courageous athletes are mentally preparing to take Sunday’s race in stride.