How many people run the London Marathon? Number of participants each year - will 2022 be the most

For the third consecutive year, the London Marathon will take place in October and 2022 is likely to see one of the biggest turnouts ever seen on the traditional route with a further contingent of people completing the route on a course of their choice.

The TCS London Marathon was founded by athletes Chris Brasher and John Disley in 1981 and is the largest marathon event in the United Kingdom as well as the third largest running event, after the Great North Run and Great Manchester Run.

Since 2006, the race has been part of the World Marathon Majors - a set of six of the world’s top level marathon races and Eliud Kipchoge and Paula Radcliffe are the current record holders of the men’s and women’s courses respectively.

In 2019, Kipchoge completed the course in two hours, two minutes and 37 seconds while Paula Radcliffe completed the 2003 course in 2:15:25.

However, the race is not just for the elites as there is a huge charity running aspect with participants helping to raise over £1billion for various charities since its creation.

Here is all you need to know about the participants ahead of the TCS London Marathon...

When is the TCS London Marathon 2022?

The marathon will take place this weekend on Sunday 2 October 2022. The main London Marathon mass start will commence at 9.40am (BST)

Full schedule:

The route will see runners start in Greenwich before they wind their way along the River Thames, passing the Cutty Sark, Canary Warf and Tower Bridge to finish along the Mall by St James’s Park.

How many people are taking part in London Marathon 2022?

This year is set to see 50,000 people take part in the street course around London while a further 50,000 are likely to be involved in the virtual course, whereby they can complete a 26.2 mile course wherever they like at some point between 00:00 and 23.59 on Sunday 2 October 2022.

Every year has seen the race get bigger and bigger and this year is set to be no exception.

The first year it began, the Marathon had 6,255 finishers and in 2019 - the last year the race was able to run as normally as it can now due to Covid-19 restrictions - the marathon had 42,549 people finishing the course.

How to watch the TCS London Marathon 2022

All of the action from London will be available to watch across BBC1, BBC 2, on BBC iPlayer and on the Red Button.

The BBC has hosted the London Marathon ever since its first edition in 1981.

How to enter Ballot for London Marathon 2023

The ballot to enter next year’s London marathon will open on Saturday 1 October 2022, while it is also possible to enter the course through a specific charity or through championship entries.

The TCS London Marathon website will have all of the information pertaining to ballot entries.