The London Marathon has become a staple of the global running calendar since its inception 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 race attracts elite athletes, amateur runners, and a worldwide audience every spring. Although the event traditionally takes place in April, the COVID‑19 pandemic forced a temporary shift to October for the 2020, 2021 and 2022 editions.
This year the marathon returns to its classic spring slot, with the wheelchair competition slated to start at 08:50 a.m. on Sunday, followed by the women’s elite race at 09:05 a.m. and the men’s elite and mass‑participation waves kicking off at 09:35 a.m.
The 2026 course follows the iconic route that runners have come to recognize, beginning with three colour‑coded starting areas—Red, Blue and Green—situated in Greenwich Park and Blackheath. By the third mile, near Charlton, the separate streams converge into a single path that heads westward through Woolwich, skirting the historic Cutty Sark and then winding through the neighbourhoods of Deptford, Surrey Quays and Rotherhithe. Runners cross the 20 km marker as they approach London Bridge, after which the route turns east toward the modern skyline of Canary Wharf and the Isle of Dogs.
The circuit then loops back through the historic districts of Shadwell and Wapping, passes the towering silhouette of Tower Hill, and continues along the Thames embankment past the Houses of Parliament. Spectators can see the London Eye on the left and Big Ben ahead as the runners glide past Westminster, head toward St James’s Park, and finally make a triumphant finish down The Mall in front of Buckingham Palace.
A detailed map of the course is available on the official marathon website. Participation numbers are set to break new ground this weekend.
After a record‑breaking ballot that attracted 1.13 million applications, organizers anticipate more than 59 000 athletes lining up at the start. The previous year’s race produced 56 640 finishers—a world‑record that stood until the TCS New York City Marathon logged 59 226 finishers in November.
The sheer scale of the event underscores its reputation as a charitable powerhouse and a cultural phenomenon. Celebrity interest remains high, even though pop star Harry Styles does not appear on the official celebrity start list. Fans continue to speculate about a possible surprise entry, especially after Styles posted a personal best of sub‑three hours at the Berlin Marathon last year and completed the Tokyo Marathon in 2025.
While his name is absent, the marathon will feature a host of other well‑known figures. Four‑time Formula One champion Sebastian Vettel is running to support the Brain & Spine Foundation and the Grand Prix Trust. Legendary jockey Sir Anthony "AP" McCoy will tackle his first marathon on behalf of the Matt Hampson Foundation.
Olympians Dame Laura Kenny (raising funds for The Ectopic Pregnancy Trust) and Sir Ben Ainslie (supporting the 1851 Trust) are also slated to compete, alongside former Arsenal captain Tony Adams (The Forward Trust), ex‑England cricketer Sir Alastair Cook (the Ruth Strauss Foundation) and tennis star Laura Robson (Give It Your Max). In a whimsical nod to popular culture, the animated character Daddy Pig will appear both in a specially designed costume on the streets and in an upcoming episode of the children’s series Peppa Pig, representing the National Deaf Children’s Society. Actors Jack O'Connell (Alzheimer's Research UK), James Norton (Breakthrough T1D), and McFly drummer Harry Judd are also confirmed participants. A full roster of celebrity runners for the 2026 TCS London Marathon can be accessed via the official site.
Sporting legends Sir Mo Farah and rugby star Ellie Kildunne will serve as the official starters. Farah returns to the marathon for the first time since retiring from track competition in 2024, while Kildunne, a Red Roses Rugby World Cup winner, will lead the pack after featuring in England’s Six Nations match against 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, highlighting the event’s broad appeal across sport, royalty and entertainment. The elite fields are stacked with defending champions: Sebastian Sawe (men’s), Tigist Assefa (women’s), Marcel Hug (men’s wheelchair) and Catherine Debrunner (women’s wheelchair).
Assefa entered the race as the favorite after shattering the women‑only marathon record en route to her 2025 victory, though Olympic champion Sifan Hassan withdrew with an Achilles injury. The men’s race is expected to be a tactical duel between Sawe and Jacob Kiplimo, who set a half‑marathon world record earlier this year, with Ethiopia’s Deresa Geleta and Kenya’s Amos Kipruto also in contention. In the wheelchair division, Hug aims to equal Sir David Weir’s record of six victories, while Debrunner seeks to improve on her near‑record performance from last year, where she missed the course record by just two seconds. Weather forecasts predict a dry day with intermittent sunshine, light breezes, and temperatures starting around 10 °C (50 °F) at the gun‑time, rising to a pleasant 17 °C (63 °F) by mid‑afternoon.
Such conditions are ideal for fast times, especially given the recent course records: Kelvin Kiptum’s 2:01:25 in 2023 for the men’s open race and Assefa’s 2:15:50 in 2025 for the women’s race. Spectator turnout will be massive, with the sections around the Cutty Sark, Tower Bridge and Canary Wharf expected to be the most densely packed. Runners can be tracked in real time via the TCS London Marathon app, which allows supporters to follow any participant by name or bib number. Looking ahead, the next edition of the marathon is scheduled for Sunday, 25 April 2027.
The public ballot for the 2027 race opens at 09:00 a.m. on Friday, 24 April, and closes at 16:00 p.m. on Friday, 1 May, giving hopeful entrants another chance to join this historic event.