The London Marathon has been a fixture on the global athletics calendar since its inaugural run in 1981, and over the 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 and New York City, and now joined by Sydney from 2025 – it remains one of the most coveted 26.2‑mile (42.195 km) challenges for elite runners and amateurs alike. Historically staged in April, the event was temporarily shifted to October for three years (2020‑2022) because of the COVID‑19 pandemic, but the 2026 edition returns to its spring slot. The wheelchair competition will kick 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 will then take place at 09:35 am. The 2026 course mirrors the classic London route. Participants will line up in three colour‑coded corrals – Red, Blue and Green – that start either in Greenwich Park or Blackheath.
By the third mile, near Charlton, the three streams converge into a single path that heads east through Woolwich, skirting the historic Cutty Sark on the Thames. Runners then weave through Deptford, the modern waterfront of Surrey Quays, and the historic docklands of Rotherhithe before reaching the 20‑kilometre marker at London Bridge. From there the route veers eastward toward Canary Wharf and the Isle of Dogs, before looping back through the lively neighborhoods of Shadwell and Wapping.
The course then sweeps past Tower Hill, continues along the South Bank to Blackfriars, and follows the Embankment with the iconic London Eye on the left and Big Ben looming ahead. Runners glide past Westminster, head toward St James’s Park, and make a final pass by Buckingham Palace before sprinting down The Mall to the finish line. A detailed map of the route is available on the official marathon website.
Participation numbers are expected to smash previous records. After a staggering 1.13 million ballot applications set a world record, organizers anticipate more than 59,000 starters on race day. The 2025 edition produced 56,640 finishers – a record that held until the TCS New York City Marathon topped it with 59,226 finishers last November. Fans have been speculating about pop star Harry Styles, who is not listed on the celebrity start roster.
Nevertheless, the singer‑songwriter has previously shown his distance‑running credentials, breaking the three‑hour barrier at the Berlin Marathon last year and completing the Tokyo Marathon in 2025, so a surprise entry remains a tantalising possibility. Among the confirmed celebrity athletes, four‑time Formula One World Champion Sebastian Vettel will run to raise money for 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 champions Dame Laura Kenny (supporting The Ectopic Pregnancy Trust) and Sir Ben Ainslie (the 1851 Trust) are also slated to compete, as are former Arsenal captain Tony Adams (The Forward Trust), ex‑England cricketer Sir Alastair Cook (the Ruth Strauss Foundation) and former tennis pro Laura Robson (Give It Your Max).
In a whimsical twist, the cartoon character Daddy Pig will appear both on screen and in person, with a costumed runner representing the National Deaf Children’s Society and an upcoming episode of the children’s series *Peppa Pig* featuring the marathon. Other notable participants include actor Jack O'Connell (Alzheimer's Research UK), James Norton (Breakthrough T1D), and McFly drummer Harry Judd, with a full celebrity lineup published on the marathon’s official site. The official starters for 2026 will be distance‑running legend Sir Mo Farah – returning for his first London Marathon since retiring from track in 2024 – and Red Roses Rugby World Cup winner Ellie Kildunne, who will be fresh from England’s Six Nations clash with Wales the day before. Past starters have included royalty and sport icons such as 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 competition will 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, now 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 could equal British Paralympian David Weir’s record of six wins if he repeats his triumph, while Catherine Debrunner seeks another title after missing the course record by just two seconds last year.
Weather forecasts predict a dry day with intermittent sunshine, light breezes, and temperatures starting around 10 °C (50 °F) and climbing to a pleasant 17 °C (63 °F) by mid‑afternoon – ideal conditions for fast times. 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. Hug has dominated the men’s wheelchair race for five consecutive years, setting a new course record in 2023, while Debrunner has claimed three victories in the last four editions. Spectators are expected to line the streets in the hundreds of thousands, with the sections around the Cutty Sark, Tower Bridge and Canary Wharf being the most densely packed.
Runners can be tracked in real time via the official TCS London Marathon app, which allows fans to follow participants by name or bib number. Looking ahead, the next marathon is scheduled for Sunday, 25 April 2027. The public ballot for the 2027 race will open at 9 am on Friday, 24 April, and close at 4 pm on Friday, 1 May, giving hopeful entrants a chance to secure a place in the world’s most celebrated road race.