The London Marathon has become 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, it shares the spotlight with Tokyo, Boston, Berlin, Chicago, New York City and, starting in 2025, the newly added Sydney Marathon. Traditionally staged in April, the event was temporarily shifted to October between 2020 and 2022 because of the Covid‑19 pandemic, but the 2026 race returns to its spring slot. **Start times and wheelchair race** The wheelchair competition will kick off at 08:50 a.m.
on Sunday, followed by the women’s elite field at 09:05 a.m. The men’s elite race and the mass‑participation start are scheduled for 09:35 a.m.
All three waves will launch from colour‑coded starting zones – red, blue and green – located in Greenwich Park and Blackheath. These separate corrals allow thousands of runners to spread out before merging near Mile 3, close to Charlton, where the course converges into a single route. **The classic London route** From the early merge point the marathon heads eastward through Woolwich, skirting the historic Cutty Sark and the River Thames. Runners then pass through the Docklands neighbourhoods of Deptford, Surrey Quays and Rotherhithe before reaching the 20 km landmark near London Bridge.
The course continues along the south bank, weaving through Canary Wharf and the Isle of Dogs, before looping back across the river to the bustling streets of Shadwell and Wapping. After a brief stretch past Tower Hill, the route turns north along the Embankment, offering iconic views of the London Eye on the left and Big Ben ahead. The final kilometres wind through Westminster, past St James’s Park and Buckingham Palace, before culminating on The Mall, where finish‑line crowds cheer the athletes across. **Entry numbers and records** Organisers anticipate a record‑breaking field this weekend.
After a world‑record 1.13 million ballot applications, more than 59 000 participants are expected to line up at the start. The 2025 edition produced 56 640 finishers, a figure that held the world record until the TCS New York City Marathon topped it with 59 226 finishers last November.
The sheer scale of the London Marathon makes it a magnet for both elite competitors and charity runners seeking to make a difference. **Celebrity and sporting icons** While pop star Harry Styles does not appear on the official celebrity start list, speculation remains that the Grammy‑winning singer might make a surprise entry after his sub‑three‑hour performance at the Berlin Marathon last year and his participation in Tokyo 2025. Other high‑profile entrants include 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 tackle his first marathon on behalf of the Matt Hampson Foundation.
Olympic champions Dame Laura Kenny (supporting The Ectopic Pregnancy Trust) and Sir Ben Ainslie (representing the 1851 Trust) are also slated to run, alongside former Arsenal captain Tony Adams (The Forward Trust), ex‑England cricketer Sir Alastair Cook (the Ruth Strauss Foundation) and former tennis professional Laura Robson (Give It Your Max). The cartoon character Daddy Pig will appear both on‑screen and in costume on the streets, promoting the National Deaf Children’s Society, while actor Jack O’Connell (Alzheimer’s Research UK), James Norton (Breakthrough T1D) and McFly drummer Harry Judd join the celebrity roster.
A full list of participants can be found on the official marathon website. **Starters and past legends** The official starters for 2026 will be sprint legend Sir Mo Farah, returning after his 2024 retirement from elite athletics, and Red Roses Rugby World Cup champion Ellie Kildunne, who played in England’s Six Nations clash against Wales just a day earlier. Previous 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, underscoring the event’s cultural significance.
**Elite competition** All four defending champions are back: Sebastian Sawe (men’s), Tigist Assefa (women’s), Marcel Hug (men’s wheelchair) and Catherine Debrunner (women’s wheelchair). Assefa leads the women’s field after smashing the women‑only world record on her victorious 2025 run, though Olympic champion Sifan Hassan withdrew with an Achilles injury. The men’s elite battle is expected to be a tight 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, Marcel Hug aims to equal British Paralympian David Weir’s record of six victories if he repeats his 2023 triumph, while Catherine Debrunner seeks to improve on a near‑record performance that fell just two seconds short of the course record last year.
**Weather and conditions** Forecasts predict dry weather with sunny intervals and light breezes throughout the day. Temperatures should start around 10 °C (50 °F) at the gun and climb to a mild 17 °C (63 °F) by mid‑afternoon, providing relatively favorable conditions for fast times. **Course records** The current men’s course record of 2:01:25 was set by Kelvin Kiptum in 2023, while Tigist Assefa’s 2:15:50 remains the women’s benchmark from the previous year.
In the wheelchair categories, Hug’s five‑year winning streak and Debrunner’s three victories in four years highlight the dominance of these athletes on the London streets. **Spectators and technology** Hundreds of thousands of onlookers will line the route, with the sections around the Cutty Sark, Tower Bridge and Canary Wharf expected to be the most densely packed. Runners and fans can track progress in real time using the official TCS London Marathon app, which allows users 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 a clear window to secure their place in the world’s most celebrated charity race.