London Marathon organisers have urged potential protesters not to allow the heightened tensions in the Middle East to disrupt Sunday’s race, which the event’s director, Hugh Brasher, said was “a force for good” throughout society.
Brasher confirmed multiple security measures would be in place this weekend, but said he hoped the focus would be on the race’s celebration of humanity.
He also revealed that among the 50,000 expected finishers there would be runners raising money for both Palestinians and Israelis who had been affected by the conflict. Organisers believe the event will break the single-day world record for charity fundraising, which stands at £66.4m from the 2019 race.
“We are always taking mitigations in case people try to disrupt the London Marathon,” said Brasher. “But we are a force for good in society. Charity runners will raise more than £66.4m on Sunday.
“There are people running for Palestinians that have been affected. There are people running for Israelis that have been affected. There are so many people running for so many different causes. What we’ve always tried to do is bring people together.”
The race has been threatened by protesters before, including supporters of the Tamil Tigers in 2009 and Just Stop Oil in 2022. However, Brasher said the race would bring people together in troubled times.
“Coexistence and togetherness is what the London Marathon is all about,” he added. “And we hope that message will resonate with anyone who thinks it is a good thing to disrupt the race, because it isn’t.”
Brasher also confirmed that a 30-second round of applause would take place for the winner of last year’s race, Kelvin Kiptum, the world record holder who died in a car accident in February.
“We will be having a tribute to Kelvin on the start line to celebrate his achievements in his short 24 years,” said Brasher, who said that runners would also be shown a video of Kiptum’s achievements before the mass participation race at 10am.
The elite men’s race will be started by Kelly Holmes, the 2004 Olympic 800m and 1500m champion while Jasmin Paris, who recently became the first woman to complete the arduous Barkley Marathons ultrarunning event, will get the elite women’s race under way.
Brasher also revealed that EastEnders would be filming at the race for the first time, with a storyline woven into Monday’s episode.
