London Marathon 2024 Guinness World Records: the quirky, costumed runners gearing up for world records

Seventy-nine individuals, including a woman donning an inflatable shark outfit and a man sprinting with DJ decks, are vying to break (or in many cases, set) Guinness World Records (GWR) during this year’s London Marathon.

But far from just being a chance to be recognised for a kooky, athletic feat, with the race’s 21 April date drawing near, these participants are also aspiring to raise substantial funds for their designated charities.

Among them is engineer Georgina Box, aiming to surpass a time of 5 hours and 30 minutes to secure the title for the fastest marathon completed in a full-body inflatable costume (female), in her shark ensemble.

GWR said: “[Box] wanted to run in a costume that was personally challenging and that would bring joy to the runners around her and judging by her training – she has made people smile!”

The 28-year-old, who is originally from Stratford-Upon-Avon and now living in London, has previously run marathons in Paris, Florence and Athens, as well as taking part in a wine marathon in Bordeaux, France.

Gus Fraser, 45, an AI consultant by day and DJ by night, is taking on the challenge of becoming the fastest person to complete the marathon while DJing. Fraser, who lives in Jersey, Channel Islands, decided to take on the record attempt after broadcasting his DJ set from unusual locations during lockdown.

He is aiming to raise over £100,000 for Cancer Research UK, after his friend’s son was recently diagnosed with a form of cancer, which was not disclosed, and losing his father to pancreatic cancer 10 years ago.

GWR said he hopes that if he achieves the GWR title by completing the race under 5:00:00, he can “inspire his two children that they can do anything they want to and hopefully inspire others to challenge themselves and fund raise”.

Join the thousands of people who’ve signed up for a National World newsletter

Laura Baker, 27, works in marketing for a wedding planning app and decided to combine her interests by running the London Marathon in a wedding cake costume.

As she attempts to run the fastest marathon dressed as a sweet food with a time of 4:12:18 to beat, the London-based runner will be raising money for the Wedding Wishing Well Foundation, a charity that organises and funds weddings for terminally ill people across the UK.

Laura Bird, 31, originally from Ipswich and now living in Cambridgeshire, is hoping to break the record for running the marathon while carrying a household appliance – in this case, a fridge.

With an aim to complete the race under 6:00:00, the London Marathon will be the environmental consultant and author’s 22nd marathon, which she is taking on after running 10 marathons in 10 days in 2020.

At 18 years old, she nearly died from a suicide attempt and said she feels that “every single opportunity like this is a privilege and I grab it with both hands”.

Other record attempts include a marketing director and breast cancer survivor from Wiltshire running alongside nine others in a London bus costume as they aim to run the fastest marathon in a ten-person costume, and a hair and make-up artist, originally from Swindon, who is undertaking the challenge of achieving the fastest marathon dressed as a drag queen (male).

The full list of official London Marathon 2024 GWR attempts:

• Fastest marathon (CIH) (male)
• Fastest marathon by a type 1 diabetic (male)
• Fastest marathon carrying a bicycle
• Fastest marathon carrying a household appliance (white goods)
• Fastest marathon carrying a household appliance (white goods) (female)
• Fastest marathon dressed as a badminton player (female)
• Fastest marathon dressed as a body part (male)
• Fastest marathon dressed as a book (female)
• Fastest marathon dressed as a book (male)
• Fastest marathon dressed as a cheerleader (male)
• Fastest marathon dressed as a chef in a non-racing wheelchair (female)
• Fastest marathon dressed as a clown (female)
• Fastest marathon dressed as a construction worker (male)
• Fastest marathon dressed as a drag queen (male)
• Fastest marathon dressed as a flag (female)
• Fastest marathon dressed as a food jar / tub (male)
• Fastest marathon dressed as a harlequin (male)
• Fastest marathon dressed as a house (female)
• Fastest marathon dressed as a knight (male)
• Fastest marathon dressed as a mammal (male)
• Fastest marathon dressed as a mechanic (female)
• Fastest marathon dressed as a mobile phone (female)
• Fastest marathon dressed as a mollusc (male)
• Fastest marathon dressed as a monarch (male)
• Fastest marathon dressed as a mythical creature (male)
• Fastest marathon dressed as a ninja (male)
• Fastest marathon dressed as a referee (male)
• Fastest marathon dressed as a road vehicle (female)
• Fastest marathon dressed as a road vehicle (male)
• Fastest marathon dressed as a road vehicle (male)
• Fastest marathon dressed as a rocking horse (male)
• Fastest marathon dressed as a rotating puzzle cube (female)
• Fastest marathon dressed as a rotating puzzle cube (male)
• Fastest marathon dressed as a scientist (male)
• Fastest marathon dressed as a snowperson (female)
• Fastest marathon dressed as a Star Wars character (female)
• Fastest marathon dressed as a sweet food (female)
• Fastest marathon dressed as a sweet food (female)
• Fastest marathon dressed as a sweet food (male)
• Fastest marathon dressed as a tap/faucet (male)
• Fastest marathon dressed as a tennis player (male)
• Fastest marathon dressed as a three dimensional aircraft (male)
• Fastest marathon dressed as a three dimensional aircraft (male)
• Fastest marathon dressed as a three dimensional aircraft (male)
• Fastest marathon dressed as a traffic cone (male)
• Fastest marathon dressed as a video game console (female)
• Fastest marathon dressed as a videogame character (female)
• Fastest marathon dressed as a videogame character (male)
• Fastest marathon dressed as a videogame character (male)
• Fastest marathon dressed as an emoji (male)
• Fastest marathon dressed in a flight suit (female)
• Fastest marathon dressed in a football/soccer kit (female)
• Fastest marathon dressed in a safari suit (female)
• Fastest marathon dressed in a tree costume (male)
• Fastest marathon dressed in a tree costume (male)
• Fastest marathon dressed in pyjamas (female)
• Fastest marathon dressed in traditional Indian dress (male)
• Fastest marathon dressed in traditional Malay dress (female)
• Fastest marathon dressed in traditional Mongolian dress (female)
• Fastest marathon in a full-body inflatable costume (female)
• Fastest marathon in a full-body inflatable costume (male)
• Fastest marathon in a lacrosse kit
• Fastest marathon in a military dress uniform (male)
• Fastest marathon in a non-racing wheelchair (female)
• Fastest marathon in a non-racing wheelchair (male)
• Fastest marathon in a ten-person costume
• Fastest marathon in a two-person costume
• Fastest marathon in pilot uniform (male)
• Fastest marathon three legged (male)
• Fastest marathon wearing a step in costume (male)
• Fastest marathon wearing chainmail (upper body)
• Fastest marathon wearing foam clogs (male)
• Fastest marathon wearing sliders (male)
• Fastest marathon wearing traditional Mongolian boots (male)
• Fastest marathon whilst DJ-ing (male)
• Fastest marathon with multiple sclerosis (male)
• Fastest marathon with multiple sclerosis (male)
• Most rotating puzzle cubes solved while running a marathon
• Most T-shirts worn during a marathon (male)