For the best viewing experience, please use the Chrome browser. Since its inception in 1981, the London Marathon has become an integral part of the annual sporting calendar, with total charity donations exceeding £1.4 billion over the years.
As one of the prestigious Abbott World Marathon Majors, it stands alongside other renowned races in Tokyo, Boston, Berlin, Chicago, New York City, and, as of 2025, Sydney, covering a distance of 26.2 miles (42.2km). Traditionally, the London Marathon takes place in April; however, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it was rescheduled to October from 2020 to 2022.
This year's event will commence with the wheelchair race at 8:50 am on Sunday, followed by the women's elite race at 9:05 am. The men's elite race and the mass participation event will start at 9:35 am.
The 2026 London Marathon will follow its traditional route, with participants starting from separate color-coded points (Red, Blue, Green) in either Greenwich Park or Blackheath. By Mile 3, near Charlton, all runners will merge into a single route, proceeding through Woolwich towards the Thames and the Cutty Sark, then passing through Deptford, Surrey Quays, and Rotherhithe before reaching the 20km mark around London Bridge. The route will then head east towards Canary Wharf and the Isle of Dogs, looping back towards Shadwell and Wapping, and passing Tower Hill before heading towards Blackfriars and running along the Embankment. As runners approach the finish, they will have the London Eye to their left and Big Ben ahead, passing Westminster and St James' Park, with the final stretch being down The Mall, near Buckingham Palace.
A detailed view of the course is available. A record number of participants are expected to take part in this weekend's event, following a world record of 1.13 million ballot applications, with over 59,000 people expected at the starting line. The 2025 London Marathon saw a record 56,640 finishers, which was the world record until the TCS New York City Marathon had 59,226 finishers last November.
Several celebrities will be participating, including four-time Formula One world champion Sebastian Vettel, who is running for the Brain & Spine Foundation and the Grand Prix Trust, and legendary jockey Sir Anthony (AP) McCoy, who will be tackling his first marathon for the Matt Hampson Foundation. Olympians Dame Laura Kenny and Sir Ben Ainslie are also scheduled to participate, along with former Arsenal and England captain Tony Adams, ex-England cricketer Sir Alastair Cook, and Laura Robson.
Additionally, the cartoon character Daddy Pig will be participating in real life and on screen, with a runner wearing a specially designed costume, as well as in an upcoming episode of the children's TV show Peppa Pig. Other notable participants include Skins actor Jack O'Connell, House of Guinness star James Norton, and McFly drummer Harry Judd, with a full list of celebrities available.
Sporting icons Sir Mo Farah and Ellie Kildunne will be the official starters for the 2026 edition, with Farah returning to the TCS London Marathon for the first time since his retirement from athletics in 2024. Previous starters of the London Marathon include Queen Elizabeth II, Sir Andy Murray, Lionesses Leah Williamson OBE, Jill Scott MBE, and Ellen White MBE, Sir Steve Redgrave, and Dame Kelly Holmes.
The elite races will feature all four defending champions, with the official elite start list available. Assefa leads the women's field after breaking the women-only record last year, although Olympic champion Sifan Hassan has withdrawn due to an Achilles injury. The elite men's race is expected to be a close contest between Sawe and Jacob Kiplimo, who set the half-marathon world record earlier this year, with Ethiopia's Deresa Geleta and Kenya's Amos Kipruto also likely to challenge for victory. Hug will draw level with British Paralympian David Weir as the most successful athlete in London Marathon history if he wins the men's wheelchair race, while Debrunner returns in the women's wheelchair race after missing the world record on the London course by just two seconds last year.
The weather conditions are expected to be dry, with sunny intervals and light winds throughout the day, and temperatures ranging from 10 degrees Celsius (50F) at the start to 17 degrees (63F) by mid-afternoon. The late Kelvin Kiptum set the men's course record with a time of 2:01:25 in the 2023 edition, while Assefa won in a record time of 2:15:50 last year.
Hug has won the men's wheelchair race five years running, setting the course record in 2023, and Debrunner has won the women's wheelchair event three times in the last four years. Hundreds of thousands of spectators will line the streets of London, with the busiest areas expected to be around the Cutty Sark, Tower Bridge, and Canary Wharf.
The TCS London Marathon app will provide updates on runners at regular intervals, allowing spectators to track participants using their name or bib number. The next London Marathon will take place on Sunday, April 25th, 2027, with the public ballot for the 2027 edition scheduled to open from 9 am on Friday, April 24th, until 4 pm on Friday, May 1st.