Some of the statistics emerging from the TCS London Marathon are simply breathtaking. And that's saying something when the event has produced seven official world records for running the classic 26.2 miles in the capital city – the most recent being achieved by Khalid Khannouchi (USA, 2:05:38 in 2002) and Mary Jepkosgei Keitany (Kenya, 2:17:01 in 2017).

The first London Marathon in 1981 had 20,000 applicants and 6,255 finishers. The 45th race, in April 2025, set Guinness World Records for 840,318 applicants and 56,640 finishers on The Mall. An extraordinary world record-breaking 1,133,813 people from the UK and worldwide have expressed a desire to run the 2026 TCS London Marathon in the public ballot.

Those mind-boggling stats merely scratch the surface, as it was the fundraising efforts of the masses that caught our eye in the runABC office. Every year, the TCS London Marathon must set a new Guinness World Record for the number of Guinness World Record attempts and successes. This year, in the 70th anniversary of Guinness World Records, 41 of the 87 attempts in London were successful.

We now hear from London Marathon Events that the final total of funds raised for charities from the 2025 TCS London Marathon is another world record of £87.3 million, smashing London’s previous charity PB by £13.8 million!

The previous record of £73.5 million, set by the TCS London Marathon in 2024, was broken just days after this year’s event, on Sunday 27 April. This brings the cumulative total raised since the first edition of the London Marathon in 1981 to £1.4 billion – simply astonishing.

Hugh Brasher, CEO of London Marathon Events, said: “We are extremely proud that the TCS London Marathon continues to set new records for the world’s largest annual one-day fundraising event. While it takes place on one day every year, its impact goes far beyond that – as this phenomenal fundraising total of £87.3 million from the 2025 TCS London Marathon shows. Thousands of charities directly benefit from the money raised by the incredible efforts of those who ran 26.2 miles on Sunday, 27 April, helping these organisations make a difference all year round. It is extraordinary that the London Marathon has now raised £1.4 billion for charity since the first edition in 1981.”

And so the stage is set for another record-breaking TCS London Marathon – good luck to all runners. There may still be charity places available for the 2026 race. Click here for details...

London Marathon details, results, and news reports are at the runABC South race listing here.

Image courtesy TCS London Marathon