The London Marathon is the very definition of work hard, play hard. Which, looking back, is what you would expect from an event that came about through a business discussion at a pub. The two notions have always been intertwined, and London proves every year that high level racing does not have to mean low level fun.
While its creation was actually inspired by the New York City Marathon, which was having its own fair share of fun at the time, the London Marathon is no follower. It’s a trend (and record) setter in its own right. In fact, it has almost every world record a marathon could possibly get, except the key one: most marathon world records. (Berlin has that crown). Some of those records may be thought of as frivolous and others perhaps more meaningful, but they all contribute towards the same end result: the celebration of human nature that is the London Marathon.
Breaking records from the very start
It may be part of a group of major marathons, but London has never been one to blend in with the crowd. Quite the opposite. This ongoing tendency to shy from the norm was foreshadowed from the very beginning, when at the first edition of the London Marathon in 1981, there were not one, but two male winners. Now if you’re wondering whether that’s even possible, it is. American Dick Beardsley and Inge Simonsen of Norway had been frantically passing the victory back and forth in the final stages of the race before deciding: why not just share it. And so they did, crossing the finish line holding hands in 2:11:48. A symbolic victory, and luckily photo finish wasn’t around to spoil the moment.
But what could be more symbolic than this: fast forward 44 years later to 2025, and the London Marathon hit its absolute peak. It achieved a number of records so high that it constituted a record in and of itself. In other words, 41 Guinness World Records were set that day, more than in any other marathon ever. Remember what I said earlier about work hard play hard? What captures that more than a 2:48:48 marathon run in Crocs. Painfully funny, and I mean that literally because foam clogs have close to no foot support, but also an incredible display of effort considering most people couldn’t run that time in normal footwear.
Dressed to impress
When you look at the list of world records from 2025, which include the likes of fastest marathon run on crutches, dressed as a traffic cone, crustacean, caveperson, you might be wondering if these records even existed in the first place. Who thought of them? Why are they even records to break? The answer lies in the spirit of the London Marathon. The community it fosters. After all, how many people would feel comfortable running 42.195 km dressed as a human body part? Not many, unless you’re at the London Marathon. The event is all about embracing fun without judgement.
But while it may centre around costumes, that fun is anything but superficial. The London Marathon is the world’s largest single day annual fundraising event. Not a cake sale, not an auction, a marathon. One of the hardest ways, in terms of physical effort, to raise money, but the one most people choose. Because when you’re surrounded by such a like-minded crowd, it doesn’t feel so hard.
What lies behind the curtain (or costume)
It’s not only charity though that the London Marathon takes seriously. At the heart of all the fun, the costumes, the weird and wonderful records, is running. And the proof? 2025 was also the year London broke the record for the highest number of finishers ever in a marathon: 56,640. It not only took inspiration from the New York City Marathon, it also took its record from 2024. That pub discussion nearly 50 years earlier more than achieved its goals. After all, if you want to be the fastest person to run a marathon in a spacesuit, you have to actually cross the finish line. Those world records may sound silly but they do make for quite the incentive.
To have over a million people, not just willingly, but eagerly, sign up to run one of the world’s most gruelling distances is almost incomprehensible. It’s more than just another record. It’s a huge testament to the atmosphere the London Marathon has built over these 45 years, one which showcases the best of running and the best of human nature all in one. So much so, that by the time the 2026 edition has taken place, most of the information in this chapter will probably be due a major update. But hey, records are made to be broken. And a lot of them it seems, by the London Marathon.
Written by- Rosana Ercilla
