The London Marathon is a marathon race that has been held each year in London since 1981, usually in April. While it is run over the traditional distance of 42.195 km [26 miles and 385 yards], it is not the conventional marathon it was intended to be; it has become a large, celebratory sporting festival. It is the second largest marathon in the world in terms of participants.
The London Marathon was founded by former Olympic champion and renowned journalist Chris Brasher, who was influenced by the New York Marathon and aspired to establish a race of this scale. Intrestingly, in the 1908 Olympics, the length of the course was 26 miles 385 yards to White City, thus setting the standard length of modern marathons ever since.
The London Marathon came into existence on March 29, 1981, when nearly 7,500 athletes participated in the race. By the 25th event the number of starters reached 35,680. The earliest known organised marathon to take place in London was during the 1908 Olympics, however this was a different course to the modern one we know today.
Whilst it is a serious athletic event, with large prize money attracting elite athletes, public perception of the race is dominated by the fun runners. Sometimes in ludicrous fancy dress and often collecting money for charity, these make up the bulk of the 30,000+ runners and help to draw crowds of half a million on the streets.
On April 19, 2003, former boxer Michael Watson, who had been told he would never be able to walk again after a fight with Chris Eubank, made headlines by finishing the marathon after six days of competing, becoming a national hero in England.
The next London Marathon will take place on Sunday, April 22, 2007.