How long does it take to run the London Marathon? Average time it takes to run iconic event

The London Marathon 2022 is set to get underway today (Sunday 2nd October) for its final autumn edition.

The event was pushed back to October for the first time in 2020 due to the Covid-19 pandemic, however it is set to return to the summer months from 2023.

The running world has already been dealt a disappointing surprise following Sir Mo Farah’s withdrawal after he suffered a hip injury, leaving the likes of Charlotte Purdue and Marc Scott representing Britain.

While the top runners will be eager to smash their personal best, many of those competing will just be aiming to finish the marathon.

So what is the average time for a marathon runner?

What is the average finishing time at the London Marathon?

The Mirror worked out the average finishing time from the 42,549 people that competed in the 2019 edition of the marathon. The average time for male finishers was 3 hours 48 minutes. The average time for a female was 4 hours 23 minutes.

What is the fastest finishing time at the London Marathon?

The current holder of the fastest London Marathon time is Eliud Kipchoge, who claimed three wins in four years before breaking the record with a 2:02:37 time in 2019.

The Kenyan is also the world record holder with a time of 2:01:09 - set at the Berlin Marathon earlier this week.

Paula Radcliffe claimed a new world marathon mixed record with 2:15:25 in 2003, which was excluded to being an outright world record as she was paced by male athletes.

However, she then went onto hold the women’s world title as she finished in 2:17:42 two years later.

What is the slowest finishing time at the London Marathon?

The slowest ever London Marathon time is held by firefighter Lloyd Scott.

Scott ran the 2002 London Marathon in a 130lb antique deep-sea diving suit - completing the race in five days, eight hours, 29 minutes and 46 seconds before going onto break his own record at the New York Marathon.

His staggering time sounds like nothing compared to the slowest marathon ever however, with Shiso Kanakuri claiming the record.

The Japanese runner had been favourite to win the marathon at the Stockholm Olympics in 1912 but collapsed only 27 kilometres in due to immense heat.

Kanakuri never reported his failure to finish and was listed as missing by officials, despite returning hope to Japan and continue his training, as well as running in another two Olympics.

The Swedish authorities eventually tracked the Japanese runner down and invented him to finish the race in 1967.

Kanakuri completed the marathon at 75 years of age and ended up completing the race in 54 years, 246 days, 5 hours, 32 minutes and 20.3 seconds.

When will runners cross the line this weekend?

Races are set to start from Greenwich on Sunday, with the elite wheelchair men’s and women’s races kickstarting the event.

The wheelchair winners are due to pass Buckingham Palace at around 10:20am, while the elite women are expected to finish after 11:05am and the fastest men due after 11:40am.