The London Marathon has been a staple of the global running calendar since its inaugural edition in 1981, and over the past four decades it has generated more than £1.4 billion for charitable causes. As one of the six Abbott World Marathon Majors – alongside Tokyo, Boston, Berlin, Chicago, New York City and, from 2025, Sydney – the event is renowned for its elite competition, massive public participation and iconic London scenery. Traditionally staged in April, the marathon was temporarily shifted to October for three years (2020‑2022) because of the COVID‑19 pandemic.
In 2026 the race returns to its spring slot, with the wheelchair competition kicking off at 08:50 am on Sunday, followed by the women’s elite field at 09:05 am. The men’s elite race and the mass‑participation start are scheduled for 09:35 am. All runners will once again set off from colour‑coded start zones – Red, Blue and Green – located in Greenwich Park and Blackheath.
By the third mile, near Charlton, the three streams merge into a single course that heads east through Woolwich, past the historic Cutty Sark, then winds through Deptford, Surrey Quays and Rotherhithe. At the 20 km mark participants cross the Thames at London Bridge and continue toward the modern skyline of Canary Wharf and the Isle of Dogs before looping back through Shadwell and Wapping. The route then sweeps past Tower Hill, skirts the banks of the River Thames at Blackfriars, and runs along the Embankment with the London Eye on the left and Big Ben looming ahead. Runners glide past Westminster, move through St James’s Park and get a final glimpse of Buckingham Palace before finishing down The Mall, a finish line that has become a pilgrimage for athletes and charity fundraisers alike.
A detailed map of the course is available on the official marathon website. This year’s entry numbers are set to smash previous records. After a staggering 1.13 million ballot applications – a world‑record figure – organisers anticipate more than 59,000 runners lining up at the start. The 2025 edition saw 56,640 finishers, a record that stood until the TCS New York City Marathon produced 59,226 finishers in November of the same year.
Among the celebrity entrants, four‑time Formula One World Champion Sebastian Vettel will be running to support the Brain & Spine Foundation and the Grand Prix Trust. Legendary jockey Sir Anthony (AP) McCoy is tackling his first marathon on behalf of the Matt Hampson Foundation.
Olympic gold‑medallist Dame Laura Kenny is racing for The Ectopic Pregnancy Trust, while Sir Ben Ainslie backs the 1851 Trust. Former Arsenal captain Tony Adams is representing The Forward Trust, ex‑England cricketer Sir Alastair Cook is fundraising for the Ruth Strauss Foundation, and former tennis star Laura Robson is supporting Give It Your Max.
In a whimsical twist, the cartoon character Daddy Pig will appear both on‑screen and in the streets, with a costumed runner joining the race to raise awareness for the National Deaf Children’s Society, coinciding with a special Peppa Pig episode. Actors Jack O'Connell (Skins) and James Norton (House of Guinness) are running for Alzheimer’s Research UK and Breakthrough T1D respectively, and McFly drummer Harry Judd will also be in the field.
A complete roster of celebrity participants is posted on the marathon’s official site. The official starters for the 2026 event are sprint legend Sir Mo Farah, returning to the London Marathon for the first time since his 2024 retirement, and Red Roses Rugby World Cup champion Ellie Kildunne, who will be fresh from England’s Six Nations clash with Wales the day before. Past starters have included Queen Elizabeth II, Sir Andy Murray, Lionesses captain Leah Williamson OBE, Jill Scott MBE, Ellen White MBE, Sir Steve Redgrave and Dame Kelly Holmes.
The elite races feature all four defending champions: Sebastian Sawe (men’s), Tigist Assefa (women’s), Marcel Hug (men’s wheelchair) and Catherine Debrunner (women’s wheelchair). Assefa, who shattered the women‑only marathon record on her 2025 victory, leads the women’s field, although Olympic champion Sifan Hassan has withdrawn with an Achilles injury.
The men’s race is expected to be a tight duel between Sawe and Jacob Kiplimo, the half‑marathon world‑record holder, with Ethiopia’s Deresa Geleta and Kenya’s Amos Kipruto also in contention. In the wheelchair division, Marcel Hug will tie British Paralympian David Weir’s record of six London Marathon victories if he repeats his 2023 win, while Catherine Debrunner is aiming to improve on her near‑record performance from last year, when she missed the course record by just two seconds.
Weather forecasts predict a dry day with intermittent sunshine and light breezes. Temperatures should be around 10 °C (50 °F) at the start, climbing to a pleasant 17 °C (63 °F) by mid‑afternoon – ideal conditions for both elite athletes and mass‑participation runners. The current course records stand at 2:01:25 for men, set by Kelvin Kiptum in 2023, and 2:15:50 for women, achieved by Tigist Assefa in 2025. In the wheelchair categories, Hug’s 2023 victory produced a new men’s record, and Debrunner has claimed three women’s titles in the last four years.
Spectator numbers will be massive, with crowds gathering especially around the Cutty Sark, Tower Bridge and Canary Wharf sections. The official TCS London Marathon app offers live tracking, allowing friends and family to follow any runner by name or bib number. Looking ahead, the next edition of the marathon is slated for Sunday 25 April 2027. The public ballot for the 2027 race opens at 09:00 am on Friday 24 April and closes at 16:00 pm on Friday 1 May, giving hopeful participants another chance to join this iconic event.