The London Marathon is an annual marathon held in London, England. It is the largest marathon in the world, with over 53,700 finishers in 2024, and 840,318 applicants for the 2025 event. Founded by athletes Chris Brasher and John Disley in 1981, it is typically held in April, although it moved to October for 2020, 2021, and 2022 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The largely flat course is set around the River Thames, starting in Blackheath and finishing at The Mall. Hugh Brasher is the current race director and Nick Bitel its chief executive.
The marathon is a long-distance foot race with a distance of 42.195 km, usually run as a road race, but the distance can be covered on trail routes. The marathon can be completed by running or with a run/walk strategy. There are also wheelchair divisions. More than 800 marathons are held throughout the world each year, with the vast majority of competitors being recreational athletes, as larger marathons can have tens of thousands of participants.
A half marathon is a road running event of 21.0975 kilometres —half the distance of a marathon. It is common for a half marathon event to be held concurrently with a marathon or a 5K race, using almost the same course with a late start, an early finish or shortcuts. If finisher medals are awarded, the medal or ribbon may differ from those for the full marathon. The half marathon is also known as a 21K, 21.1K, or 13.1 miles, although these values are rounded and not formally correct.
Eliud Kipchoge is a Kenyan long-distance runner who competes in the marathon and formerly specialized in the 5000 metres. Regarded as one of the greatest marathon runners of all time, he is the 2016 and 2020 Olympic marathon champion, and was the world record holder in the marathon from 2018 to 2023, with a time of 2:01:09 set at the 2022 Berlin Marathon, until that record was broken by Kelvin Kiptum at the 2023 Chicago Marathon with a time of 2:00:35. He has run four of the 10 fastest marathons in history.
Fauja Singh is a British Sikh and retired marathon runner of Punjabi Indian descent. He has beaten a number of world records in multiple age brackets, but none of his times have been ratified as records. His personal best time for the London Marathon (2003) is 6 hours 2 minutes, and his marathon best, claimed for the 90-plus age bracket, is 5 hours 40 minutes at the alleged age of 92, at the 2003 Toronto Waterfront Marathon.
The Tube Challenge is the competition for the fastest time to travel to all London Underground stations, tracked as a Guinness World Record since 1960. The goal is to visit all the stations on the system, not necessarily all the lines; participants may connect between stations on foot, or by using other forms of public transport.
The Miami Marathon is an annual marathon racing event hosted by Miami, Florida, since 2003. The marathon course also runs through the city of Miami Beach, Florida. The 42.195-kilometre (26.219 mi) race is typically run on the last Sunday in January or the first Sunday in February, at approximately 6:00 am. The event also includes a half marathon, and a wheelchair division for both races. Marathon finish times can be used to qualify for the Boston Marathon. Shifting Gears United is partner for the disability division.
The California International Marathon (CIM) is an annual road marathon held in Northern California since 1983. The net downhill course starts at Folsom Dam and ends at the State Capitol in Sacramento. The race is organized by the Sacramento Running Association.
The Carlsbad 5000 is an annual five kilometer road running event that takes place each spring in the city of Carlsbad, California along the north coast of San Diego County.
Sara Hall is a professional American distance runner for ASICS. Hall's personal best time for the marathon is 2:20:32 set at the Marathon Project in Chandler, Arizona on December 22, 2020, making her the third-fastest American woman in history. She is the second-fastest American woman ever to run the half marathon, running 1:07:15 on January 16, 2022–an American record at the time.
Oz Pearlman is an American mentalist, magician, and athlete who lives and works in the United States. He performs as a mentalist under the name "Oz the Mentalist", and has successfully appeared on America's Got Talent, winning third-place in Season 10 (2015).
Michal Kapral is a Canadian joggler based in Toronto, Ontario. He owns the world records for running the fastest marathon and half-marathon while juggling, for the fastest 10-kilometer run while juggling without a drop, and formerly held the world record for fastest marathon while pushing a stroller.
The 20K run is a long distance foot race. It is a rarely held race that is not recognized as an Olympic event. The event held IAAF world championship status in 2006 only, when the existing IAAF World Half Marathon Championships briefly hosted the shorter distance.
Kim Pawelek Brantly is a Vietnamese-American middle- and long-distance runner. She is the woman's 1999 US Marathon Champion.
Logan Howard (USA)
Julia Grechinenko (UKR)
Janez Maroevic (CRO)
Elina Junnila (FIN)
Lisa Wessels (CAN)
Antonio Sousa (POR)
Joel Cardoso (MEX)
Santiago Ascenso (BRA)
Fabian Anrig (SWI)
Mike Korir (KEN)
Soekeer Fajardo (CUB)
Maria Morales (ARG)
Anton Van Zyl (RSA)