The wheelchair athletes have made their way to the start line and are off in the first elite race of the day.
Russell ‘Hardest Geezer’ Cook was just interviewed on the BBC’s pre-race coverage. Cook ran 9,941 miles from one tip of Africa to the other in under a year and an average of over 28 miles a day.
I can really only sum it up by saying it was carnage from start to finish,” said Cook on his milestone in Africa. “I think we’re going to find out how badly damaged the body is today. This is my first long run since I’ve been back in the UK.
Cook also shared that he had 93 hours worth of music that he lent on during his incredible journey. When asked what song he never wants to hear again, he said: “Maybe Toto. It is a good tune but when you hear it one to many times it’s just like …”
In the first elite race of the day, the British wheelchair racing legend David Weir will be racing in his 25th consecutive London Marathon this year.
Weir is the most decorated athlete in the event’s history with eight wins. He will be racing with a new chair which he has broken personal bests and may give him the push he needs for a possible ninth victory in London.
“It’s basically a Formula One chair because it’s made by Sauber (which has a Formula One team under the name Stake F1 Team Kick Sauber), it feels amazing to push,” Weir said.
Weir will be facing the undisputed No 1 wheelchair racer, Marcel Hug. The Switzerland native was the first man to win all six Abbott World Marathon Majors (Tokyo, Boston, Berlin, Chicago, New York and London) in a single season last year and will be aiming for a fourth straight win in London.
Hugh Brasher, the London Marathon race director believes the women’s race may be a tougher race than the Olympics.
No race in the history of our sport has ever had that,” says Brasher. “I have no idea who’s going to win but it’s going to be an incredibly competitive event. This will be a harder marathon to win than the Olympic marathon in Paris, I’m pretty certain of that.
Here is Sean Ingle with more.
So about that record. Ethiopia’s Tigist Assefa has set her sights on further lowering her women’s marathon world record to under two hours 10 minutes – but admits her only goal in today is to win.
Assefa ran 2hr 11min 53sec in Berlin last September – a time that obliterated the previous mark of 2:14:04 set by Brigid Kosgei in 2019.
But when asked whether she was chasing a fast time in London, Assefa was more circumspect. “My goal is to win,” she replied. The sense is that Assefa will not go at full throttle today given that she also has the Olympic marathon in Paris in under four months’ time, she is still the overwhelming favourite.
Assefa will be racing against the former record holder Kosgei, fellow cou Ruth Chepngetich, the Olympic champion Peres Jepchirchir and the 2022 London Marathon winner Yalemzerf Yehualaw.
In the men’s race, Tamirat Tola will be keen to match his efforts at the New York City Marathon from November which he won. He came in third in this race last year. His competitors include Mosinet Geremew, who ran the third-fastest time in history at the 2019 London Marathon and Kenenisa Bekele, whose seemingly endless accolades include three Olympic gold medals.
Hello and welcome to our live coverage of the 2024 London Marathon. The sun is shining, the birds are chirping and I am ready to take you along with me as I race on 26.2 miles (42.195 km) across the capital.
Just kidding. The most I have ever run in one go was a 5km race when I was about 12 years old. And that is only because I had to for school.
Luckily, you and I can witness a record crowd take on today’s race with an expected turn out of over 50,000 people. You will barely even miss the fact that I won’t be taking part.
And of course there are the elite races. There are is a world record in sight and a few of Britain’s own looking to make their mark.
If you are at the race, supporting someone who is taking part, or just soaking in the atmosphere, please send me your stories and any charity links you wish to share.
9.05am: Elite wheelchair men’s and women’s races (all times in BST)
9.25am: Elite women’s race
10am: Elite men’s race and mass start