The Bank of America Chicago Marathon has postponed race registration until March 19 to check its new system, organizers said.

Registration initially was scheduled to span March 5 through April 7, and registrants of a new lottery system were to be notified April 14. Race organizers said Tuesday the process was postponed to "finalize a routine yet comprehensive assessment of our new registration process."

“We apologize for this inconvenience and thank you for your patience and understanding as we aim to ensure a seamless registration experience for all who wish to register for the event."

Organizers said the guaranteed entry and lottery entry deadline of noon on April 7 remains unchanged.

After last year's registration snafu, the marathon announced in January a new process to sign up for the Oct. 12, 2014, race.

This time around all runners will be part of a lottery system unless they qualify for guaranteed entry. To qualify, runners must participate through an official Chicago Marathon charity, as an official international tour partner or as a "legacy finisher" who has finished the marathon five or more times in the past 10 years.

Men who have run a verifiable sub 3:15:00 marathon and women who have run a verifiable sub 3:45:00 marathon on or after January 1, 2012 also are guaranteed a spot in the race.

Everyone else who registers will be part of a lottery system. The race is capped at 45,000 runners.

Last year's registration was suspended after overwhelming demand crashed the site, and the remaining 15,000 bibs were doled out via lottery.