The Virgin London Marathon is the second largest marathon in the world and the deepest elite marathon fields in the known universe. The London event is scheduled on 4 October 2020. Update on viability is 7 August 2020.
London Marathon, photo by worldmarathon.com
The following message was sent to participants in the 2020 Virgin Money London Marathon.
Dear Participant
We hope that all is well with you and your loved ones.
Over the past month, we have been working closely with the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport, the Mayor’s Office, UK Athletics, TfL, The Royal Parks, the emergency services and our many partners in London. We are extremely grateful to all of the authorities in London for their continued help and support for the London Marathon.
Some of you will have seen that a pathway for the return of mass participation running events was published on Tuesday 21 July. As a result, we expect you will see many more announcements of races going ahead in August, September and beyond.
Those documents were produced by UK Athletics (our sport’s governing body) in consultation with the medical profession, London Marathon Events (that’s us) and other large mass participation event organisers, and are in line with the work we have been doing over many months to show how we can socially distance the Virgin Money London Marathon on Sunday 4 October.
However, there are areas within these documents requiring further consultation with local NHS Trusts, the emergency services and local authorities which means we are still unable to confirm our plans for another 10 days, when that consultation will have been completed.
I realise that this uncertainty is far from ideal and I would like to thank you for your patience and understanding in these very challenging circumstances.
We know how important the Virgin Money London Marathon is to you, to charities and in showing the world the wonderful spirit of London, of Great Britain and of our running community. So please bear with us while we finish the extensive work we have been doing to try to enable us to run together, safely.
I will be in contact with our final decision and the options available to you no later than Friday 7 August.
Best wishes,
Hugh Brasher
