Everything you need to know about setting up, running, and broadcasting live races with RaceLive.
RaceLive is an AI-powered live video platform built specifically for endurance events — 5Ks, marathons, triathlons, and everything in between. Race directors use RaceLive to broadcast every participant live using smartphones as cameras. Our AI reads bib numbers in real time, switches between camera feeds automatically, and gives every athlete a personalized live stream their family and friends can watch from anywhere.
Creating an event takes under 10 minutes:
Once created, your event dashboard provides RTMP URLs and stream keys to share with your volunteers, plus a public link for fans.
RaceLive uses per-event pricing — you only pay when you run an event. The price scales based on your event type (sport), the number of cameras, the number of registered participants (if bib tracking is enabled), and any applicable discounts. There is no monthly subscription and no hardware to purchase. Full pricing is calculated and shown at checkout when you configure your event.
Just a smartphone with good cellular coverage — iOS or Android, any modern device released in the last 3–4 years will work fine. No dedicated cameras, encoders, or hardware purchases required. Volunteers also need a streaming app (see below) and a mount to keep the phone stable.
One volunteer per camera location. The number of cameras you can add depends on your event type — longer, larger events support more cameras. For most 5K/10K events, 2 cameras (start and finish) is sufficient. Longer courses like half marathons and marathons benefit from additional cameras at key mile markers and course turns.
Any RTMP-capable mobile streaming app works. We recommend:
Your event dashboard provides the RTMP URL and stream key for each camera. Copy these directly into your chosen app's stream settings.
Minimum: 5 Mbps upload sustained per camera. We recommend 10+ Mbps for reliable 1080p streaming. Test upload speed at each camera location using Speedtest.net at least one day before the event. LTE/4G on major carriers typically provides 10–50 Mbps upload in open areas. Avoid locations where buildings or terrain block the cell signal.
Infrastructure (streaming channels, AI processing pipeline) spins up automatically 1 hour before your scheduled event start time. You'll receive a notification when it's ready. You can also spin it up manually at any time from your event dashboard by clicking Start Infrastructure — useful if you want to run a test stream the evening before the event.
About 60–90 seconds for the AWS MediaLive pipeline to start up. Your Live Monitor page updates in real time — you'll see each camera's status go from Idle to Running as the stream channels activate. Once running, volunteers can start streaming from their phones and viewers will see the feed immediately.
You can end the event manually from the Live Monitor page by clicking End Event. Infrastructure is torn down within a few minutes. If you don't end it manually, the system automatically shuts everything down at the calculated end time based on the event's scheduled duration.
The infrastructure is automatically stopped after the event's scheduled duration has elapsed from the start time. For example, a 3-hour event scheduled for 8:00 AM will be force-shut down at 11:00 AM — regardless of whether cameras are still streaming. This prevents runaway charges. If your event runs long, you can extend it manually from the dashboard before the cutoff.
Recordings are processed within 1–2 hours of the event ending and then available for 90 days. After 90 days, recordings are archived to cold storage. You can download MP4 recordings from your event dashboard before they are archived. Archived recordings can be restored on request (additional fee may apply).
The AI camera switcher monitors all active camera feeds simultaneously. Every few seconds it scores each camera based on scene activity (athletes in frame, motion, engagement potential) and bib detection events. It then switches the broadcast feed to the camera with the highest engagement score. Cameras that are offline or not streaming are excluded from the rotation entirely, ensuring viewers always see an active feed.
Bib tracking is an optional add-on that uses AI computer vision to read race bib numbers from the live camera feeds in real time. When a bib number is detected, it's logged with a timestamp and camera ID. On the viewer-facing live stream page, spectators can enter one or more bib numbers to track — they'll see a live feed of every time those athletes appear on camera, complete with a timeline of sightings. This is especially popular for family members who want to follow a specific runner without watching the entire broadcast.
Under ideal conditions — stable camera, waist-to-chest camera height, good lighting, athletes facing the camera — accuracy exceeds 99%. Detection quality drops in backlit conditions (sun behind athletes), when bibs are partially obscured, or when athletes are moving very fast and close to the camera. The system assigns a confidence score to each detection; low-confidence detections are filtered out to minimize false positives. Camera placement significantly affects accuracy — see our Best Practices guide for optimal setup.
Infrastructure spin-up normally completes within 2–3 minutes. If it is still showing "spinning up" after 5 minutes:
When a camera drops mid-event:
Common causes: phone screen locked (disable auto-lock before streaming), app crashed, cellular handoff between towers. Plugging into power and using Do Not Disturb mode prevents most disconnections.
If viewers report a blank or buffering player:
Our team is happy to help you set up your first event or troubleshoot any issues.
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