The London Marathon

By Laura Davis

Former Olympic champion Chris Brasher brought the marathon to London in 1979, after participating in the New York marathon he wrote an article for a British newspaper stating;
"To believe this story you must believe that the human race be one joyous family, working together, laughing together, achieving the impossible. Last Sunday, in one of the most trouble-stricken cities in the world, 11,532 men and women from 40 countries in the world, assisted by over a million black, white and yellow people, laughed, cheered and suffered during the greatest folk festival the world has seen."

He went on to question whether London could host such a festival.

Taking notes from the New York and Boston marathon Brasher began to develop the London marathon, securing the first sponsorship contract with Gillette for £50,000, setting the charitable precedent for the events future, and setting down several aims. One of which was to replicate the great success of the New York marathon and another of proving the UK's ability to organise major events.

On March 29th 1981 the first London marathon commenced with 20,000 applying to run, 7,747 participating starting off at Blackheath Common and Greenwich Park, and 6,255 making it across the finish line at Constitution Hill; the finish line has since moved to Westminster Bridge and then on to the Mall. Since this time the event has continued to grow in size, stature and popularity with a capacity 46,500 accepted entrants each year. In all, a total of 711,260 have completed the race since its inception with 34,497 runners crossing the line in 2008.

On its 25th anniversary in 2005, the course saw some dramatic changes with the course being rerouted to avoid the Tower of London cobbles and twisty road, much to the relief of participants, resulting in a 45 second time improvement for elite runners.

The London Marathon has experienced great success as a charity event, with many charitable participants dressing up in fancy dress in support of their causes. It is estimated that since its first run in 1981 the marathon has raised over 200 million for charities across the world. The bond between race and charity is so strong that one third of the places on offer are reserved for charities.

If you are looking to compete in a marathon, or the London Marathon next year then find a running friend to help you train at FillMyTime.com.

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