2016 London Marathon

The London Marathon is run over a largely flat course around the River Thames, and spans 42.195 kilometres (26 miles and 385 yards). The route has markers at one mile and five kilometre intervals.^[5]

The course begins at three separate points: the 'red start' in southern Greenwich Park on Charlton Way, the 'green start' in St John's Park, and the 'blue start' on Shooter's Hill Road. From these points around Blackheath at 35 m (115 ft) above sea level, south of the River Thames, the route heads east through Charlton. The three courses converge after 4.5 km (2.8 miles) in Woolwich, close to the Royal Artillery Barracks.^[6]

As the runners reach the 10 km mark (6.2-mile), they pass by the Old Royal Naval College and head towards Cutty Sark drydocked in Greenwich. Heading next into Deptford and Surrey Quays in the Docklands, and out towards Bermondsey, competitors race along Jamaica Road before reaching the half-way point as they cross Tower Bridge. Running east again along The Highway through Wapping, competitors head up towards Limehouse and into Mudchute in the Isle of Dogs via Westferry Road, before heading into Canary Wharf.^[6]

As the route leads away from Canary Wharf into Poplar, competitors run west down Poplar High Street back towards Limehouse and on through Commercial Road. They then move back onto The Highway, onto Lower and Upper Thames Streets. Heading into the final leg of the race, competitors pass The Tower of London on Tower Hill. In the penultimate mile along The Embankment, the London Eye comes into view, before the athletes turn right into Birdcage Walk to complete the final 352 m (385 yards), catching the sights of Big Ben and Buckingham Palace, and finishing in The Mall alongside St. James's Palace.^[6]

The men's race was won by Kenyan Eliud Kipchoge in a new course record, eight seconds shy of the world record. Kipchoge, after running alongside Stanley Biwott for most of the race, broke off to defend the title he won the previous year.^[7][8] The women's race was won by Kenyan Jemima Sumgong, who fell along with two-time winner Mary Keitany and 2010 winner Aselefech Mergia in the latter stages of the race. Sumgong recovered to take the finish line, in front of 2015 winner Tigist Tufa.^[9][8]

Coming less than a week after the Boston Marathon, the same winners won the London wheelchair races. Marcel Hug from Switzerland won the men's wheelchair division and the women's wheelchair division was won by American Tatyana McFadden. Hug won ahead of course record holder Kurt Fearnley and six-time winner David Weir, with the top three finishers each separated by a second. McFadden held off Manuela Schär by a single second to claim her fourth consecutive title, with 2010 winner Wakako Tsuchida coming in third.^[10][11]

Astronaut Tim Peake ran the London Marathon from the International Space Station's treadmill, timed to begin just as the race did. Peake became the first man to run a marathon from space, and the second person after Sunita Williams ran the 2007 Boston Marathon from the ISS.^[12]