London Marathon 2025: The Ultimate Guide

Records will be under threat when the 45th edition of the London Marathon takes place on Sunday. Stacked elite fields will have course and world records in their sights, with a £98,000 bonus available to anyone successful in achieving the latter in the men's and women's races.

Route Map

The course begins at Greenwich Park and ends on The Mall, where runners will cross the finishing line after passing Buckingham Palace. The mostly flat route takes in several other London landmarks, including Tower Bridge, Canary Wharf and Big Ben.

Elite Fields & Prize Money

Eliud Kipchoge, who became the first athlete to run a marathon in under two hours in 2019 and is widely regarded as the greatest distance runner in history, returns to the London Marathon for the first time since 2020. The record four-time winner is joined in the elite men's race by defending champion Munyao and Ethiopia's Olympic champion Tamirat Tola.

Half marathon world record holder Jacob Kiplimo makes his debut after becoming the first person to run a half marathon in under 57 minutes in February. World record holder Ruth Chepngetich and 2024 winner Jepchirchir have withdrawn from this year's elite women's race.

All four reigning Olympic and Paralympic marathon champions will be present, with Swiss athletes Marcel Hug and Catherine Debrunner contesting the elite wheelchair events. The race winners will receive £41,000, while a £112,000 bonus will be paid to any man running under 2:02:00 or woman under 2:15:00.

British Athletes Competing

Olympic and world triathlon champion Alex Yee will make his highly anticipated marathon debut. Eilish McColgan will make her debut at this year's London Marathon, competing over 26.2 miles for the first time after injury prevented her participation in 2023.

Records to Beat

• Men: 2:01:25, Kelvin Kiptum (Ken), 2023
• Women (mixed): 2:15:25, Paula Radcliffe (GB), 2003
• Women only: 2:16:16, Peres Jepchirchir (Ken), 2024
• Wheelchair men: 1:23:44, Marcel Hug (Swi), 2023
• Wheelchair women: 1:38:24, Catherine Debrunner (Swi), 2022

Celebrities Running

Those participating in this year's London Marathon will share the course with Britain's most successful Olympian of all time - seven-time gold medal-winning cyclist Sir Jason Kenny. Also among the sporting royalty present will be former England cricketers Sir Andrew Strauss and Sir Alastair Cook.

Facts and Stats

• A record 840,318 people applied to take part in this year's London Marathon via the public ballot, with more than 56,000 expected to compete on the day.
• The race is the world's largest annual one-day fundraising event, with more than £1.3bn raised for charity since 1981.
• There will be 103 participants attempting to break 87 Guinness World Records at this year's London Marathon.

Weather Forecast

The forecast for London on Sunday is currently looking good for the marathon runners. Sunny intervals and light winds are forecast, but no rain, with temperatures of about 13C predicted for the start of the race. However, the temperature is expected to rise to a warm 21C for those finishing later in the afternoon.

How to Watch

Here is how to follow coverage of the London Marathon on Sunday, 27 April across BBC platforms (all times BST and subject to late changes):

• Thursday, 24 April: 19:30-21:00 BBC Radio 5 Live - London Marathon preview
• Saturday, 26 April: 08:30-10:30 BBC iPlayer, BBC Sport website & app - Mini London Marathon
• Sunday, 27 April: 08:00-18:00 BBC Radio London - live coverage

Related topics: Athletics