Christopher BarrettAfter Kenya’s Sabastian Sawe crossed the finish line in a world marathon record time of one hour 59 minutes and 30 seconds, TCS London Marathon’s organisers announced that the event was the world’s biggest.
Sawe became the first man to run a sub‑two‑hour marathon in a competitive race, while the race itself set a Guinness World Record for the largest number of finishers in a marathon, with a total of 59,830 to beat the 59,226 set by the TCS New York City marathon in November.
On the eve of the main event, a record 19,645 children and young people crossed The TCS Mini London Marathon finish line on The Mall. London Marathon Events said more than 588,000 schoolchildren have signed up to take part in the TCS Mini London Marathon in schools, with the event window for the virtual challenge open until 1 May.
LME CEO Hugh Brasher said, “We are incredibly proud to have set a new Guinness World Record. Our mission as a company is to inspire activity.”
Ben Cooper, TCS Mini London Marathon Event Lead, said it had proved to be the best Mini Marathon yet: “We had another set of outstanding races in our championships event, with more than 1,500 of the UK’s best young athletes and para-athletes taking part this year, including U12 boys and girls for the first time.
“Children from schools across the country, from as far as Leeds, Birmingham and Southport, experienced the magic of the event throughout the day. It was fantastic to see so many families being active together and enjoying the glorious sunny weather in the Fan Zone in St James’s Park afterwards.”