London Marathon runners break 44 records – as host of famous faces complete course

The London Marathon saw 44 world records broken in an eclectic range of categories – from the fastest ever finish for a female runner to the quickest time for a person dressed as a tap.

Kenya’s Peres Jepchirchir finished the elite women’s race in two hours, 16 minutes and 16 seconds, beating the previous record of two hours, 17 minutes and one second.

And when it was time for amateur runners to pound the 26.2-mile course around the capital, plenty of runners in eye-catching outfits set records of their own too.

Marcus Mumford – a 45-year-old from Worcester, who is not to be confused with the singer – ran the fastest marathon for a person dressed as a tap.

Sam Hull, 44, from Bromham, Bedfordshire, ran in memory of his late father and raised funds for charity Sue Ryder in recognition of the support his family received – all while dressed as a tennis player.

As it happened: The London Marathon 2024

And Lee Baynton, 39, from Essex, clocked the fastest-ever time for someone in an inflatable costume.

Some runners set records without costumes, including Anthony Bryan, 34, from north London, who achieved the fastest finishing time for a person by a man paralysed down one side of the body.

Mr Bryan broke the record by just one minute and said after finishing the race: “It was tough. We got to 20 miles and I got really bad cramp in my leg and thought I wasn’t going to finish it.

“My guide runner said Ant, ‘we’re not going to make it, you need to sprint’.”

The record breakers were joined on the course by a number of politicians and famous faces.

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They included Chancellor Jeremy Hunt, former health secretary Matt Hancock – who winced in pain after crossing the finish line – and McFly drummer Harry Judd.

TV presenter Joel Dommett was among those who sported costumes, as he wore the Piranha costume sported by McFly’s Danny Jones in series one of The Masked Singer UK.

Russ “Hardest Geezer” Cook, who finished running the entire length of Africa on 7 April, put his running shoes back on to hit the streets.

He raised funds for the Running Charity and also helped pace some of the young people taking on the challenge.

In total, more than 50,000 people ran the marathon course and the rain held off, with runners enjoying dry and bright conditions with highs of 12C.

In the elite men’s race, Britons Emile Cairess and Mahamed Mahamed finished in third and fourth respectively.