Thousands of spectators gather in the Copley Square area to cheer Boston Marathon runners down the final stretch. The finish line is on Boylston Street, midway between Exeter and Dartmouth streets, in front of the Boston Public library. At the end of the race, runners exit into the Family Meeting Area beginning on Stuart Street. Runners can find their family members using alphabetically lettered signs that enables parties to meet in the section allocated by the first letter of a runner’s name. Approximately 20,000 runners, representing runners from every state in the nation and over 50 countries, will cross the finish line.