More than 40,000 people ran together through the streets of the capital on 2nd October, enjoying perfect conditions for their 26.2-mile journey to the Finish Line of the 2022 TCS London Marathon.
Celebrating the 42nd edition’s theme of #WeRunTogether, some 38,156 people had passed beneath the new digital finish gantry on The Mall by 5 pm after 40,927 started the event in the morning. Thousands more joined the head-bobbing party by completing their marathon challenge virtually over a 24-hour window, confirming the event’s status as the most popular marathon on the planet.
One of those initiatives was Rainbow Row, which encouraged the LGBTQIA+ community “to bring colour to the event”, while assisted wheelchair entrants were on the course for the first time, and the marathon championed its new non-binary entry policy.
Skipping Sikh Rajendra Singh MBE was also a part of the marathon. He posted a tweet: "And I did it completed the @LondonMarathon in 6 hours 29 minutes. Really enjoyed the atmosphere and such lovely weather. Thank you to @age_uk
for allowing me to be a part of raising awareness on the work you’re doing for people like us. Well done to everyone #LondonMarathon."
The Marathon was a weekend to remember and it proved so, as the elite races delivered stunning performances from two of the sport’s up-and-coming stars, and the world’s best wheelchair racers produced a pair of course records fit for the occasion.
There were thousands of other heartwarming stories among the day’s finishers, not least that of Anoosheh Ashoori, who finished his gruelling journey in less than five-and-a-half hours, just six months after being released from prison in Iran, where he shared a cell with cockroaches and rats.
The class of 2022 at the TCS Mini London Marathon graduated in style on Saturday (Oct 1). Racing 24 hours before the main marathon gets underway, around 7000 youngsters relished the occasion as they charged down The Mall cheered on by friends, family and world marathon record-holder Eliud Kipchoge.
The youngsters competing are not the only ones with ambition either. After moving the Mini Marathon from Sunday to Saturday, the organisers intend to grow the participation figures so they reach 50,000 in time for the London Marathon’s 50th anniversary in eight years’ time.
