London Marathon organisers hope to set world record for 2021 runners
It is planning for 100,000 people to take part in its 2021 event, with 50,000 runners on the traditional course and another 50,000 in a virtual event, which will see participants take on 26.2 miles over a course of their choice on race day.
The 2020 London Marathon was cancelled for all but elite athletes, who had to run in a bio-secure bubble due to the risks of Covid. Brigid Kosgei won the women’s event, while Shura Kitata took the men’s title. Other participants were able to take part virtually.
A total of 37,966 participants completed the 2020 virtual event, and it was awarded the Guinness World Record for ‘most users to run a remote marathon in 24 hours’.
The organisers hope that the success of the UK’s vaccination scheme will see every adult offered a vaccine by autumn, meaning it could accommodate record numbers on the course.
The current record for the London Marathon is 42,906 starters, which was achieved in 2019. It is estimated that there will also be around 750,000 spectators, and around 6,000 volunteers to help on the day. The record for most participants is 53,121, held by the 2018 New York Marathon.
They will be part of a unique day in the history of the London Marathon on Sunday 3 October
– Hugh Brasner
“With a national vaccination programme underway, we hope to see an unprecedented 100,000 people take part in this year’s Virgin Money London Marathon on Sunday 3 October,” said event director Hugh Brasher.
“The London Marathon is a wonderful example of sport as a force for good while raising millions for charity. It’s all about communities and people coming together and one of our founding pillars is ‘to have fun and provide some happiness and a sense of achievement in a troubled world’.
“The world record-breaking success of the virtual event in 2020 and the incredible stories from participants across the globe showed how the world’s greatest marathon brought light and hope in the darkness of the pandemic. We want to offer that again and we have also accelerated the plans we have been working on for some years to increase the number of finishers on the streets of London to 50,000.
“People can run wherever they are in the world, they can run for charity, they can run for their mental or physical health or run for the sheer enjoyment of it – whatever the reason, they will be part of a unique day in the history of the London Marathon on Sunday 3 October.”
Ballot results for the 2021 London Marathon are set to be released on February 8. Unsuccessful applicants will then have an exclusive window to enter the virtual event before it is opened up to the general public.
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