We present a minimal computational model to mimic the crowd in marathon race. We aim to examine the influence of frontliners on crowd dynamics by comparing the simulated races with and without their presence. The primary outcome of our study revealed that the local velocity and density of the participants exhibit a wave pattern similar to what is observed in actual races. Another important result we obtained is that the travelling wave in the crowd consistently propagates with a constant speed, irrespective of the system size under consideration. The dynamic of participants in the longitudinal direction mainly contributes for the velocity fluctuation and the fluctuation in the transverse direction is suppressed. In the absence of frontliners, the fluctuations in density and velocity weakens without significantly influencing the other statistical and dynamical characteristics of the crowd. It is also observed that the density wave travels faster than the velocity wave. Through this research, we aim to enhance our understanding of crowd motion, which can inform the development of effective crowd management strategies and contribute to the successful control of such events.
Comment: 10 pages, 9 figures