key events
The women’s elite race is on track to break the world record. The record is 2 hours, 17 minutes and 1 second. According to the BBC, current runners run three minutes faster than this pace. Assefa and Kosgei are neck and neck. Which of them will take the plunge once the pacemaker withdraws?
The gap between Hug and Weir is now 45 seconds. Now, it’s definitely a race for second place between Weir and Romanchuk.
The wind is certainly having its effect on the elite women’s race as they now head towards Tower Bridge.
They are now playing at a pace only Assefa can adapt to.
In the men’s wheelchair classic, Huger has opened up a gap ahead of Weir and Romanchuk. Hager accelerated a little early and Will couldn’t keep up.
In the elite women’s race, DeBrenner led by about four minutes and now looked set to win. From the first few miles she was alone.
We may see two Swiss champions in these two races.
Today, many world records are expected to be broken, and not just in elite competitions. We saw runners hoping to break the marathon world record in traditional Indian attire, the marathon world record as a live DJ, and the marathon world record in an inflatable shark costume.
Emile Cairess is among those competing in the men’s elite event, ultimately hoping to break Mo Farah’s British record of 2:05:11, lowering his personal best to 2:03 and win an Olympic medal.
I definitely want to break Mo’s British record. I want to run as fast as possible, and I feel like I can run faster in the future.
An Olympic medal is also my goal – Los Angeles of course. Although for this Olympics, if I can qualify, then I hope to be competitive. I’m not going there just to make up the numbers.
I’ve definitely improved a lot. My workouts, mileage, anything you can quantify, are better than ever.
The male racers are already at the starting line. Tamirat Tola is the favorite but 41-year-old Kenenisa Bekele is also a contender. They set off and there was a huge cheer as the last race started. Behind them are the remaining 50,000 starters. These figures are a record for the London Marathon.
Tributes to the athlete who will be remembered the most in Kiptum began ahead of the men’s elite competition. A very poignant moment in London.
The final elite match will begin in 15 minutes.there will be a A 30-second round of applause before the game honors last year’s winner, Kelvin Kiptum.
The 24-year-old marathon world record holder died from serious injuries in a car accident with his coach Gervais Hakizimana in February.
As of this year, Kiptum had run three of the seven fastest marathons in history and was ranked No. 1 among male marathoners in the world at the time of his death.
In the men’s race, Hug and Romanchuk were tied for the lead approaching the 14km mark.
The two actually took turns chatting. encourage each other? A little trash talk? who knows?
Catherine Debrunner breaks away from Manuela Schär and has now overtaken some of the laggards in the men’s wheelchair race.
This is DeBrenner’s first major championship appearance this season. She set new course records at the 2022 Berlin Marathon and the 2023 Chicago Marathon, breaking five-time champion Schaal’s five-game winning streak.
The female elite racers lined up on the starting line. The temperature in London seems to have dropped a bit, and everyone is trying to warm their hands and arms.
A large crowd cheered the announcers as they introduced what many consider to be the greatest course at the London Marathon. They’re gone!
Just over 11 minutes into the elite wheelchair race, American Daniel Romanchuk is in the lead. Hager and Will were close behind, ranking second and third respectively.
Romanchuk was the first American to win the men’s wheelchair division of the New York City Marathon in 2018 and won the event in London in 2019.
Wheelchair racing marks a major win for disabled sport, with the London Marathon becoming the first marathon in the world to offer wheelchair athletes the same prize money as other elite events.
Therefore, all winners of today’s Classic will receive £44,000, with runner-up receiving £24,000 and third runner-up receiving £18,000.
Wheelchair athletes have arrived at the start line for the first elite race of the day.
“The toughest old man” Russell Cook has just been interviewed by the BBC for the pre-match report. Cook traveled 9,941 miles from one end of Africa to the other in less than a year, averaging more than 28 miles per day.
He started running on April 22, 2023 in the southernmost tip of South Africa. During the 352-day campaign, Cook raised more than £650,000 for charities.
“I can really only sum it up by saying it was a bloodbath from start to finish,” Cook said of his milestone in Africa. “I think we’ll know today the extent of the damage to the bodies. That’s me First long distance run since returning to the UK.
Cook also said that he loaned out 93 hours of music during this incredible journey. When asked what song he never wanted to hear again, he said, “Maybe Toto. It’s a good tune, but when you hear it a lot, it’s like…” That’s fair enough.
In the first elite race of the day, British wheelchair racing legend David Weir will run the London Marathon for the 25th consecutive time this year.
Weir is the most decorated athlete in the history of the event with eight wins. He will enter the race with a new chair, which has already beaten his personal best, and could give him the boost he needs to claim a ninth victory in London.
“It’s basically a Formula One chair because it’s made by Sauber (Sauber owns a Formula One team called Stake F1 Team Kick Sauber) and it feels great to push,” Weir said. .
Will will face Marcel Haag, the undisputed number one wheelchair racer. The Swiss was the first runner to win all six Abbott World Marathon Majors (Tokyo, Boston, Berlin, Chicago, New York and London) in a single season last year and is aiming for a fourth consecutive victory in London win.
London Marathon director Hugh Brasher believes the women’s race could be tougher than the Olympics.
There has never been a game like this in the history of our sport. “I don’t know who is going to win, but it’s going to be an extremely competitive event. I’m pretty sure it’s going to be a harder marathon to win than the Paris Olympic Marathon.
Learn more from Sean Ingle.
So about that record. Ethiopia’s Tigist Assefa aims to further lower the women’s marathon world record to under 2 hours and 10 minutes, but admitted her only goal today was to win.
Last September, Assefa ran 2 hours, 11 minutes and 53 seconds in Berlin, breaking the record of 2 hours, 14 minutes and 04 seconds set by Brigid Kosgei in 2019.
But when asked if she wanted to live a happy life in London, Assefa sounded more cautious. “My goal is to win,” she answered. It feels like Assefa won’t be at full strength today as she will also be competing in the Paris Olympic Marathon in four months, but she is still the overwhelming favourite.
Assefa to compete against former record holder Kosgei, compatriot Ruth Chepngetich, Olympic champion Peres Jepchirchir and 2022 London Marathon champion Yalemzerf Yehualaw.
In the men’s race, Tamirat Tola is keen to match his performance in the New York City Marathon he won in November. He finished third in this race last year. His rivals include Mosinet Geremew, who ran the third fastest time in history at the 2019 London Marathon, and Keninisa, who has a seemingly endless list of accolades including three Olympic gold medals Kenenisa Bekele.
Preface
Hello and welcome to our live coverage of the 2024 London Marathon. The sun is shining, the birds are chirping, and I’m ready to take you 26.2 miles (42.195 kilometers) through the capital.
just kidding. The most I ever ran in one go was a 5K, when I was about 12 years old. That’s just because I have to go to school.
Fortunately, you and I were able to witness the record attendance at today’s game and achieve the desired results 50,000 people. You can hardly miss the fact that I won’t be attending.
And, of course, there’s the elite competition. World records are on the horizon, and Britain has some of its own hoping to make its mark.
9.05am: Elite Wheelchair Men’s and Women’s Races (all times subject to BST)
9.25am: Women’s Elite Competition
10 a.m.: Men’s Elite Race and Group Start
