London Marathon
Updated: 12/11/2025, 11:24:09 AM Wikipedia source
The London Marathon (also known as the TCS London Marathon for sponsorship reasons) is an annual marathon held in London, England. Founded by athletes Chris Brasher and John Disley in 1981, it is typically held in April, although it moved to October for 2020, 2021, and 2022 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The largely flat course is set around the River Thames, starting in Blackheath and finishing at The Mall. Hugh Brasher (son of Chris) is the current race director and Nick Bitel its chief executive. The race has several components: it has a mass race for the public, professional races for men and women long-distance runners, elite-level wheelchair races for men and women, and a 3-mile mini marathon event for under-17 athletes. There is a significant charity running aspect to the marathon, with participants helping to raise over £1 billion since its founding, including £67 million at the 2024 London Marathon which was the highest amount for a single-day fund-raising event. Since 2006, the elite race has been part of the World Marathon Majors, which includes seven of the world's top level marathon races. The London Marathon has seen the marathon world record broken on seven occasions: Khalid Khannouchi broke the men's record in 2002, while women's records have been broken by Grete Waitz (1983), Ingrid Kristiansen (1985), Paula Radcliffe (2002, 2003, 2005) and Mary Jepkosgei Keitany (2017). The current elite course records are held by Kelvin Kiptum (2:01:25 in 2023) and Paula Radcliffe (2:15:25 in 2003). The current wheelchair course records are held by Marcel Hug (1:23:44 in 2023) and Catherine Debrunner (1:38:24 in 2022). The race often has a title sponsorship, it has been branded the "TCS London Marathon" since 2022.
Infobox
Tables
| Edition | Date | Applicants | Accepted | Starters | Finishers | Charity raised(£ millions) | Official charity |
| 1 | 29 March 1981 | 20,000 | 7,747 | 7,055 | 6,255 | — | |
| 2 | 9 May 1982 | 90,000 | 18,059 | 16,350 | 15,116 | — | |
| 3 | 17 April 1983 | 60,000 | 19,735 | 16,500 | 15,793 | — | |
| 4 | 13 May 1984 | 70,000 | 21,142 | 16,992 | 15,675 | ||
| 5 | 21 April 1985 | 83,000 | 22,274 | 17,500 | 15,873 | ||
| 6 | 20 April 1986 | 80,000 | 25,566 | 19,261 | 18,067 | British Sports Association for the Disabled (autistic) | |
| 7 | 10 May 1987 | 80,000 | 28,364 | 21,485 | 19,586 | Farnham Park Trust | |
| 8 | 17 April 1988 | 73,000 | 29,979 | 22,469 | 20,932 | SportsAid | |
| 9 | 23 April 1989 | 72,000 | 31,772 | 24,452 | 22,701 | The Evelina Family TrustSpecial Olympics | |
| 10 | 22 April 1990 | 73,000 | 34,882 | 26,500 | 25,013 | Battle of Britain AppealCommunity Action Trust | |
| 11 | 21 April 1991 | 79,000 | 33,485 | 24,500 | 23,435 | Action on AddictionRoyal Marsden Cancer Research | |
| 12 | 12 April 1992 | 83,000 | 34,250 | 24,500 | 23,833 | Guy's HospitalEvelina London Children's HospitalTuskforce | |
| 13 | 18 April 1993 | 68,000 | 35,820 | 25,000 | 24,495 | St John AmbulanceSnowden Award Scheme | |
| 14 | 17 April 1994 | 72,000 | 37,379 | 26,000 | 25,242 | British Heart FoundationChildline | |
| 15 | 2 April 1995 | 79,000 | 39,097 | 27,000 | 25,377 | Leonard Cheshire DisabilityCancer Relief Macmillan | |
| 16 | 21 April 1996 | 68,000 | 39,173 | 27,134 | 26,806 | British Heart FoundationNational Asthma Campaign | |
| 17 | 13 April 1997 | 78,000 | 39,813 | 29,500 | 29,189 | British Heart FoundationNSPCC | |
| 18 | 26 April 1998 | 96,000 | 42,228 | 30,663 | 29,972 | Age ConcernDiana, Princess of Wales Memorial Fund | |
| 19 | 18 April 1999 | 87,000 | 43,774 | 31,582 | 30,849 | Whizz-KidzLeukaemia Research | |
| 20 | 16 April 2000 | 93,000 | 42,596 | 32,620 | 31,698 | Mencap | |
| 21 | 22 April 2001 | 92,000 | 43,517 | 31,156 | 30,318 | MS Society | |
| 22 | 14 April 2002 | 99,000 | 46,083 | 33,297 | 32,950 | Outward BoundFCWL | |
| 23 | 13 April 2003 | 111,000 | 45,629 | 32,746 | 32,324 | Shelter | |
| 24 | 18 April 2004 | 108,000 | 45,219 | 32,746 | 32,012 | SenseBritish Heart Foundation | |
| 25 | 17 April 2005 | 132,000 | 47,969 | 35,600 | 35,300 | Help the Hospices | |
| 26 | 23 April 2006 | 119,000 | 47,020 | 33,578 | 33,250 | The Stroke AssociationAnthony Nolan | |
| 27 | 22 April 2007 | 128,000 | 50,039 | 36,396 | 35,729 | 46.5 | WellChild |
| 28 | 13 April 2008 | 120,000 | 48,630 | 35,037 | 34,637 | 46.7 | Heart UKSpinal Injuries Association |
| 29 | 26 April 2009 | 155,000 | 49,995 | 35,884 | 35,404 | 47.2 | The Children's Trust |
| 30 | 25 April 2010 | 163,000 | 51,378 | 36,956 | 36,666 | 50.6 | CLIC Sargent |
| 31 | 17 April 2011 | 163,926 | 50,532 | 35,303 | 34,872 | 51.8 | Oxfam |
| 32 | 22 April 2012 | 170,150 | 50,200 | 37,227 | 36,812 | 52.8 | TeamPB (Prostate Cancer Charity)(Breast Cancer Care) |
| 33 | 21 April 2013 | 167,449 | 48,323 | 34,631 | 34,381 | 53.0 | YouthNetAge UK |
| 34 | 13 April 2014 | 169,682 | 49,872 | 36,337 | 35,977 | 53.2 | Anthony Nolan |
| 35 | 26 April 2015 | 172,888 | 51,696 | 38,020 | 37,793 | 54.1 | Cancer Research UK |
| 36 | 24 April 2016 | 247,069 | 53,152 | 39,523 | 39,140 | 59.4 | NSPCC |
| 37 | 23 April 2017 | 253,930 | 53,229 | 40,048 | 39,487 | 61.5 | Heads Together |
| 38 | 22 April 2018 | 386,050 | 54,685 | 40,926 | 40,220 | 63.7 | Teenage Cancer Trust |
| 39 | 28 April 2019 | 414,168 | 56,398 | 42,906 | 42,549 | 66.4 | Dementia Revolution |
| 40 | 4 October 2020 | 457,861 | 77 | 77 | 61 | Mencap | |
| 41 | 3 October 2021 | Macmillan | |||||
| 42 | 2 October 2022 | British Heart Foundation | |||||
| 43 | 23 April 2023 | 49,675 | 49,272 | 43,965 | 63.0 | Great Ormond Street Hospital | |
| 44 | 21 April 2024 | 578,374 | 65,725 | 54,218 | 53,000 | 67.0 | Samaritans |
| 45 | 27 April 2025 | 840,318 | Pancreatic Cancer UK | ||||
| 46 | 26 April 2026 | Marie Curie |
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