London Marathon in doubt following Boston call-off

London Marathon organisers said plans to race in October remained far from certain last night after counterparts at the Boston Marathon pulled the plug on their race for the first time in its 123-year history.

The most prestigious marathon in the United States had been moved from April to Sept 14, but organisers said on Thursday that they had been too optimistic. It will now be a “virtual” event.

Boston mayor Marty Walsh said: “There’s no way to hold this usual race format without bringing large numbers of people into close proximity. This kind of event would not be responsible or realistic on Sept 14 or any time this year.”

In the UK, Covid-19 lockdown restrictions will ease further on Monday, with horse racing set to be the first major sport to return. However, marathon director Hugh Brasher has warned runners that they still face uncertainty in the weeks ahead.

“At this point, we cannot be certain if the event can go ahead or, if it can, in what form it can take place,” he said in a letter sent out last week. “We know that you would like certainty. However, much as we would like to, we cannot offer you certainty.

“We announced the postponement on Friday, March 13. Back then, which now seems a lifetime ago, we were confident that we would be able to stage the 40th race on our new date of Sunday, Oct 4. But this is a world where things are changing so rapidly on a day-to-day basis and that is now far from certain.”

A fundraising event – the 2.6 Challenge – was held in place of the London Marathon on April 26. A total of more than £10million was raised for 3,961 charities.

The update on the London Marathon came as it was announced that this year’s Dublin Marathon, scheduled for Oct 25, had been cancelled.

The Paris Marathon was postponed until Oct 18, while the Barcelona Marathon has been rearranged for Oct 25 and uncertainty surrounds the Berlin race.