Nurses’ skirt protests spark record review

● Senior sister told she should have run in a pinafore and not scrubs

Guinness World Records is to review its guidelines after a nurse was told her London Marathon record attempt did not count because she ran the race in scrubs rather than in a skirt.

Jessica Anderson, a senior sister at the Royal London Hospital, finished the race 22 seconds faster than the current record holder and described the rules as “sexist”, while the decision prompted an online backlash from nurses across the UK.

NHS staff have rallied behind a nurse who was told her London Marathon record attempt did not count because she ran the race in scrubs rather than a skirt.

Guinness World Records (GWR) said it was reviewing its guidelines after a backlash against its decision to deny Jessica Anderson a place in the record books.

GWR officials told her that its criteria for a nurse’s uni - form also included a pin afore and cap, but tights were optional.

She was told her scrubs did not meet the criteria for a nurse’s uniform but ran anyway, completing the course in three hours, eight minutes and 54 seconds.

The nurse, a senior sister at the Royal London Hospital, finished the race 22 seconds faster than the current record holder and described the rules as “sexist” and “outdated”.

She told Runner’ s World: “Some of the nurses I work with do wear dresses, but mostly we wear scrubs or a tunic and trousers.

“I’m sure Guinness World Records don’t intend to cause offence but it would be nice if they decided to revise their criteria.”

Ms Anderson believes the rules about wearing a dress apply to anyone wanting to challenge the record title– including men.

She said :“Some of the male nurses I work with are really hopeful that they do change the definition.”

The story prompted nurses to tweets el fi es of themselves, with very few dresses on show.

GWR was forced yesterday to agree that it was time for a review.

It claimed that “inclusiveness and respect” were values it holds “extremely dear”.

It continued: “While we always need to ensure we can differentiate between categories, it is quite clear that this record title and associated guidelines is long over due are view, which we will conduct as a priority in the coming days.”