Marathon Startzeit

London Marathon Startzeit: Wann beginnt das Rennen 2024?

Your exact start time for the London Marathon will depend on the wave you're in, so you'll need to keep an eye on your schedule for Sunday
At an event as big as the London Marathon, with around 40,000 runners, start times get complicated. To get that many people across the start line in an orderly manner you need a system of staggered waves based on predicted time, and you need to do some planning to make sure all that time spent training for the marathon isn't undermined by missing your start spot.

When does the London Marathon start?

You will find the exact information about your start time in the email from the organizers, which should have landed in your inbox in the last few days. Along with your time, the email contains information about the color of your start zone, your wave number, when you should arrive at your start zone and the best station to get there.

When do the elite start at the London Marathon?

The first races to start at the London Marathon are the elite men's and women's wheelchair events which begin at 9.15am. The elite women then start at 9.25am, with the elite men starting at 10am, just before the mass start.

The London Marathon is unusual in having a women-only elite race where the elite females do not have the advantage of running in larger groups with the men. As a result, the London Marathon has always historically hosted the women's world record, with Mary Keitany setting the current record of 2hrs 17mins 1sec at the 2017 London Marathon. This record could be broken in 2024 with several extremely fast women running at the London Marathon, including world record holder Tigist Assefa who ran 2h 11min 53sec at the Berlin Marathon last year.

Do everyone start the London Marathon at the same time?

To ensure that overcrowding is not an issue, the London Marathon has a staggered start, which uses the predicted running time to send you into a wave of runners with similar goals. The fastest runners start first at around 10am, with waves of runners then setting off between 11am and 11.30am until the last runners leave. In the early stages of the race, the course is still quite busy, but if everyone sets off at the same time, it would be chaos.

When does the London Marathon usually start?

I have run the London Marathon six times and have been in the first mass participation wave each time. Four of my London Marathons have had a 10am start time and it is again this weekend. In 2022 the start time was 9:40am and in 2021 it was 9:30am, with both races held in the autumn due to the disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Every time I have run the marathon in April it starts at 10am.

Where does the London Marathon start?

There are three starting points for the London Marathon, designed to get tens of thousands of runners onto the course as efficiently as possible. All three start lines - red, green and blue - are located in Greenwich Park, which takes some time to get to.

When should you come to the race?

When you receive your final instructions email, it will include your exact start time along with a suggested time to arrive at your designated assembly area, which is usually 80-90 minutes before your start time. This will give you time to drop your bag, use the toilet (with long queues) and get into your start pen, which usually opens around 15 minutes before your start time.

There are four start areas in Greenwich Park: Blue, Red, Green and Yellow. You can identify your start by looking at your registration email or race card – the colour of your number and its background indicates your start wave.

Blackheath is the best station for runners at the Blue and Yellow starts, Greenwich is the best for Red and Maze Hill is the best for Green.

Note that each station is a 10-15 minute walk from the actual start areas, so factor this into your travel plans. Each start is clearly signposted, and stewards are there to help if Maranoia takes hold and you feel like you're going the wrong way.

Once you're in your start area, it can get chilly while you wait for the race to start, so a good tip is to take old clothes with you that you're happy to donate to the bins around the start line. A black bin bag works well too, or a cheap waterproof poncho. Just make sure that anything you throw away before the race is put in a bin where it won't get in the way of other runners.