The famous blue line has been removed after the 42nd TCS London Marathon and the points totted up for the Abott World Marathon Majors Championships – current men's leader Eliud Kipchoge (Kenya) and females Gotytom Gebreslase (Ethiopia) – so we thought we would review some of the more off-beat aspects of the world's greatest 26.2-mile foot race.

Both 2022 London champions finished with unprecedented speed, perhaps heralding a new approach to racing marathons. Amos Kipruto (2:04:39) won his first Abott World Marathon Majors race after passing halfway in 1:02:14. After losing pace as the race became a tactical battle he ran his fastest 5K split of 14:32 between 35K and 40K to break clear for victory.

Meanwhile, Yalemzerf Yehualaw (2:17:26) ran an almost perfectly even split off her half marathon time (1:08:46) before blasting out her fastest 5K in 15:51 at the same late stage – despite hitting the deck with 10K remaining! This incredible section included a 23rd mile covered in 4:43, believed to be the fastest-ever women's mile at this stage of a marathon.

There were no outright world records this year but two frankly astonishing world masters records were set, headed by the fifth-placed Kenenisa Bekele's M40 best of 2:05:53. Krishna Stanton (Blackheath and Bromley Harriers, 2:48:06) ran a W55 world record.

The winner of the first-ever women's Olympic Marathon in Los Angeles in 1984, Joan Benoit Samuelson (3:20:20) won the W65-69 category and was only 7:24 outside the W65 world record, despite recently recovering from knee surgery.  

Of course, there were the usual Guinness World Record attempts – 34 in total, of which 18 were successful. David Jones (2:47:15) had an extra half hour in bed by running the fastest marathon in his pyjamas, raising funds for ABS Soldiers Charity. David Henson (2:54:57) had his hands tied in handcuffs but also went under three hours for Southampton Hospitals Charity.

The fastest female Guinness World Record breaker was Sarah Dudgeon (3:11:52) who ran as a witch complete with a broomstick, while Kellie Clark (4:24:06) was suitably attired as a Marathon bar (formerly the name for Snickers) for the fastest female dressed as a piece of confectionery!

Tristan Clark, Freddie Flanagan, Freddie Wright, John Lavelle, George Peirson, and Hugh Williams showed great teamwork and coordination to take the fastest in a six-person costume record, running in a converted vegetable box in 4:25:12 (pictured above).

One absolute star of the event was Matt Brooks (3:44:00) who ran as – a star! He said: "I'm running as a star. Actually, I am a star, because I got a world record! I'm one of the happiest people in the world."    

Of the stars of media and sport, McFly drummer Harry Judd ran 3:14:37 and BBC newsreader Sophie Raworth managed a calf strain from Tower Bridge to achieve 3:52:36 in her tenth marathon since her first run 12 years ago.    

Image courtesy TCS London Marathon