Live Coverage - Part 1

:00:19. > :00:29.It is surely destined to become one of the great events in British

:00:30. > :00:41.sport. Jo Pavey there, debut marathon. One of the greatest pieces

:00:42. > :00:49.of running that we have ever seen. Shoulders burning, fingertips

:00:50. > :00:54.pushing. Elliot Kear one of the fastest marathons of all time. A

:00:55. > :01:03.sight to behold, every single year. Hello and welcome to the 2017

:01:04. > :01:17.Virgin Money London Marathon, We are at the Red Start, the crowds

:01:18. > :01:22.are starting to build, doing their last-minute preparations, getting a

:01:23. > :01:27.better nutrition on board. 40,000 runners will start this incredible

:01:28. > :01:31.journey, 26.2 miles through the streets of London, and they are all

:01:32. > :01:34.linked, they have a shared experience, whether they are the

:01:35. > :01:39.elite athletes, good club runners or those just a need to get through in

:01:40. > :01:43.seven hours. Weeks, months, sometimes years of training, this is

:01:44. > :01:47.the 37th time this race has been run and a quarter of a million people

:01:48. > :01:55.apply to bun, it takes a lot of time and perseverance to get your place

:01:56. > :02:00.at the start and each and every one of them has a unique reason for

:02:01. > :02:14.running. My name is tenure. Defender. I got that wrong, start

:02:15. > :02:23.again! I am from Mexico. Canada. Live Avery, 32, from South Wales. I

:02:24. > :02:27.am running for my father, who is unfortunately suffering pancreatic

:02:28. > :02:32.cancer. Children with cancer UK, for my mum. I have a point to prove,

:02:33. > :02:35.having come back from a life-threatening illness. I am

:02:36. > :02:43.running for a premature baby charity. I am running because, well,

:02:44. > :02:48.frankly, I am nuts! It is something I have always wanted to do. We want

:02:49. > :02:53.to run all the major marathons. This time last year I had not run more

:02:54. > :03:03.than 5k. Why not do it now? Now or never. Just to show I can do it. I

:03:04. > :03:04.am type one diabetic. To stay fit physically and mentally. We are

:03:05. > :03:11.running together! Good luck to everybody in that film

:03:12. > :03:14.and to all the runners who you can see are gathering at the start

:03:15. > :03:17.here in Blackheath. Awaiting them is a journey

:03:18. > :03:20.they will never forget. Let's remind ourselves of the route

:03:21. > :03:25.they will run today. At just over six miles, runners

:03:26. > :03:28.will pass the iconic Cutty Sark - one of the great trade ships

:03:29. > :03:31.which now resides in dry dock At 13 miles and the halfway point,

:03:32. > :03:36.it's the sight of Tower Bridge, but there's still

:03:37. > :03:39.another 13 miles to go. At 18 miles or so, runners pass

:03:40. > :03:41.through the business district Still, there's eight miles to travel

:03:42. > :03:47.but the finish isn't far now. With over two miles to go,

:03:48. > :03:49.they'll pass through Sometimes this is the area

:03:50. > :03:56.where the elite races can take And then after passing Big Ben it's

:03:57. > :04:00.the final sprint home, And, after 26.2 miles,

:04:01. > :04:13.the most welcome sight It truly is an inspiring place to

:04:14. > :04:19.be, we will be there a little bit later on.

:04:20. > :04:23.They are the main landmarks the runners will pass today but this is

:04:24. > :04:26.really where it starts, the business end of things, because behind me you

:04:27. > :04:30.can see the trucks that will take all the bags from the runners today

:04:31. > :04:34.to the finish so they can meet up with their luggage later on. What a

:04:35. > :04:39.logistical job that is back here. 900 people will help with that

:04:40. > :04:43.alone. Some very important buildings up there in the distance and the

:04:44. > :04:48.runners you can see behind me are getting very excited. Good morning!

:04:49. > :04:51.Getting themselves warmed up, fuelled up, they all look very

:04:52. > :04:56.excited, some of them clearly don't know what is in store but I have

:04:57. > :05:02.some guests over here who do. One of them, Ken Jones, 83 years old, 339

:05:03. > :05:07.days, and Bronte Randle-Bissell, 18 years and three days. It doesn't

:05:08. > :05:10.take much to work out why they are historical members of the starting

:05:11. > :05:15.line, the youngest and oldest people to start the marathon today. You

:05:16. > :05:21.don't eat any introduction because you are all so ever present in the

:05:22. > :05:25.London Marathon, 37th today. Incredible, you have seen some sites

:05:26. > :05:30.over the years! It is wonderful now, at the beginning it was pretty basic

:05:31. > :05:36.but now it is tremendous. The organisation I imagine has changed.

:05:37. > :05:47.It is wonderful. How fast have you run it? My best is two hours and 50

:05:48. > :05:54.minutes. Today? Six hours! Still impressive. I am running for my

:05:55. > :05:59.running club, they are a charity, and also sending money for the

:06:00. > :06:02.Syrian refugees. Excellent. This is obviously an event you will keep on

:06:03. > :06:08.doing for as long as your legs will take you around the course. I hope

:06:09. > :06:14.you will give some advice to Bronte. I have told her to take it easy at

:06:15. > :06:17.the beginning. Why are you running? I am running for make a wish

:06:18. > :06:21.foundation in memory of my best friend Leanne, she died two years

:06:22. > :06:25.ago from cancer but during a period of time when she was well, we went

:06:26. > :06:31.on her which together with her mum, I went to Florida and we did stuff

:06:32. > :06:36.like Disneyland. You will be thinking about her today? All the

:06:37. > :06:42.way. The training has been good, I am a swimmer so my fitness is a bit

:06:43. > :06:47.there but it is getting used to the impact on my body, but I have run

:06:48. > :06:54.about 16, 17 miles. Ken has given me lots of advice to keep on going. And

:06:55. > :07:01.use the crowd, I imagine? They do encourage you to keep going. When it

:07:02. > :07:04.gets difficult, 20 miles, 21 miles, you have got to did in your reserves

:07:05. > :07:09.and that is when the crowd helps you. Good luck, both of you,

:07:10. > :07:13.hopefully we will see you out there on the course today.

:07:14. > :07:18.Let's bring you up to speed with the schedule today. Ken and Bronte will

:07:19. > :07:23.start their journey at 10am. Before then, lots of race is getting

:07:24. > :07:25.underway, 8:55am the Elite Wheelchair races begin, five minutes

:07:26. > :07:41.later the remaining PARA athletics events. At

:07:42. > :07:44.9:15am, the elite women's race, they have asked for a women only world

:07:45. > :07:45.record pace, also a race to determine which British women

:07:46. > :07:48.qualify for the August World Championships, so a second race

:07:49. > :07:55.going on in there. At 10am, the men's athlete, and we have heard

:07:56. > :08:05.that Kenenisa Bekele has asked for world record pace. There will be

:08:06. > :08:11.lots of stories to keep our eye on. At 11:20am we will be looking at the

:08:12. > :08:15.other runners. Let's look at the weather conditions, it is a mild

:08:16. > :08:22.start, 10 degrees, moving slowly to around 14 degrees by the time we get

:08:23. > :08:25.to 2pm, which is perfect for the elite runners, no rain expected

:08:26. > :08:33.throughout the day, so that is looking good. Don't forget, get in

:08:34. > :08:38.touch with us, use the hashtag, #GetInspired. We have to queue up to

:08:39. > :08:42.speed with what is happening, let's head to one of my colleagues at the

:08:43. > :08:48.start, he has got dancing feet, you will be enjoying the drummers, but

:08:49. > :08:54.could Ore Oduba quickstep 26.2 miles to the finish through London. Could

:08:55. > :08:59.you?! Good morning, Gabby. Not happening! But the marching band has

:09:00. > :09:03.just struck up and you cannot help but box. But I cannot think of

:09:04. > :09:07.anything more terrifying than doing a marathon which is why I am in awe

:09:08. > :09:11.of everybody who takes to the streets of London, not least our

:09:12. > :09:14.superwomen to the left of me, our sporting superwomen who all have

:09:15. > :09:19.varying degrees of nerves as they get ready to start the race. Helen

:09:20. > :09:26.Glover, first London Marathon. You have just come off the back of a 125

:09:27. > :09:32.mile kayak in 23 hours. What is it with you?! I know! I thought, give

:09:33. > :09:37.myself a week to recover, fingers crossed I have recovered but I am so

:09:38. > :09:41.nervous, I am looking forward to it, the vibe and excitement is

:09:42. > :09:47.incredible. Your partner is next to you, Heather. U2 had your double

:09:48. > :09:50.gold, it is great to be back seeing you in your sporting paraphernalia.

:09:51. > :09:55.Heather, you have not been back in the water since you retired in the

:09:56. > :10:02.summer, but first challenge, never too far away from a sporting event?

:10:03. > :10:06.Exactly, why not be part of a great sporting event in London? It is

:10:07. > :10:10.fantastic. I decided not to do an endurance race last weekend to give

:10:11. > :10:15.myself a chance this weekend! You guys are kicking off the whole day?

:10:16. > :10:19.It is such an honour, we are starting a couple of the races and

:10:20. > :10:22.we could not be more proud, so thank you to the London Marathon for

:10:23. > :10:30.letting us do it. Good luck, don't be nervous. They are! Another double

:10:31. > :10:33.Paralympic gold medallist as well, retired in February, and someone

:10:34. > :10:37.else who needs to get back on the start line. Yes, the feeling of

:10:38. > :10:40.being in competition with someone and yourself is just addicted, every

:10:41. > :10:45.single person who has ever done a race will know what that feels like,

:10:46. > :10:51.when you finish, Win, lose, draw, you always have a massive high and I

:10:52. > :10:54.am seeking back today. The time is irrelevant, it is just finishing it,

:10:55. > :11:01.enjoying it, raising money for charity. And of course your partner

:11:02. > :11:05.is a big marathon runner as well so perhaps has given you some good

:11:06. > :11:09.tips. They were all getting tips a few minutes ago from Chrissie

:11:10. > :11:15.Wellington whose marathon probably add up to about 1000! This will just

:11:16. > :11:22.be a fun run for you! I wish it was! I decided against a warm up in the

:11:23. > :11:26.Thames! I am excited to be here, this is where my passion for

:11:27. > :11:30.endurance sport first started so it will be great to be able to run the

:11:31. > :11:34.streets of London with 30,000 others, raise money for charity,

:11:35. > :11:42.just get to celebrate the power of sport. You guys make me so proud to

:11:43. > :11:46.know you. We cannot wait to watch them, our sporting superwomen,

:11:47. > :11:50.Gabby. They are indeed, and they will be mixing it with the masses

:11:51. > :11:55.out there today, hopefully inspiring people along the way. Not long now

:11:56. > :11:59.until the start of the first race, the Elite Wheelchair men's and

:12:00. > :12:05.women's races, and of course David Weir aiming to become a record seven

:12:06. > :12:11.time winner here in London. Phil Jones reminds us of his story.

:12:12. > :12:15.He is London's own, record equalling six time champion here, wheelchair

:12:16. > :12:19.racing wonder and six time Paralympic gold medallist, David

:12:20. > :12:24.Weir. Going for gold! Pick to win number six in the wheelchair

:12:25. > :12:29.marathon. His last London Marathon win was 2012 when he equalled Tanni

:12:30. > :12:34.Grey-Thompson's record. Surely the super seventh could follow? Not so.

:12:35. > :12:40.Misfortune, malfunction and near misses in June. David Weir finishes

:12:41. > :12:46.fifth, he just had nothing left to give. Today, he is back to try

:12:47. > :12:49.again, buoyed by a recent win in the Paris Marathon. His surprisingly

:12:50. > :12:55.frugal Rio Paralympics last year, when he failed to win a medal in six

:12:56. > :12:59.events, and his recent public row with Britain's lead wheelchair coach

:13:00. > :13:04.have been put to one side for now. Will this be his final record

:13:05. > :13:09.attempt? Quite possibly. Perhaps, then, just one last push for a

:13:10. > :13:14.magnificent seventh. What a servant of British sport he

:13:15. > :13:18.has already been, as Baroness Tanni Grey-Thompson will attest. She is

:13:19. > :13:26.down on The Mall commentating for us today as always. Good morning,

:13:27. > :13:30.Tanni. Good morning. There is a bit of a delayed but I know you were

:13:31. > :13:33.listening to that, you know about his trials and tribulations over the

:13:34. > :13:37.last year or so, some suggest this could be his last London Marathon,

:13:38. > :13:41.he said he might make an announcement on Monday. What advice

:13:42. > :13:47.would you give him? I don't think he is physically done yet, it is how he

:13:48. > :13:51.is mentally. Rio was tough for him, is huge expectation, everyone who

:13:52. > :14:03.knew him thought he was not going to win

:14:04. > :14:07.another four goals, he probably should have won a medal, and making

:14:08. > :14:10.a decision on the back of that is difficult. He has said he will not

:14:11. > :14:13.compete for GBA get on the track but on Friday he was talking about the

:14:14. > :14:16.Commonwealth Games, where he will compete for England, and he said it

:14:17. > :14:19.could be a maybe, so I don't think he is done yet. I don't want him

:14:20. > :14:22.making a decision on the back of the day, whether he wins or not. A lot

:14:23. > :14:25.of people, personally I want to see him have that seventh victory

:14:26. > :14:29.because I think he deserves it as an athlete. I would also love to see

:14:30. > :14:32.him carry on road racing because he has so much potential still left in

:14:33. > :14:37.him as a wheelchair racer, he has not hit his

:14:38. > :14:42.Let's talk about the field and who is there to beat him, who he will

:14:43. > :14:48.get the challenge from. Another really strong world-class field?

:14:49. > :14:53.Virtually everybody in the men and women's race, apart from David Weir,

:14:54. > :15:01.have come from Boston. Marcel Hug won that. Ernst van Dyk, from South

:15:02. > :15:05.Africa. They are not going to make it easy for him. You might have a

:15:06. > :15:09.fewer athletes racing together to try to block him out. There are

:15:10. > :15:15.eight Japanese athletes, they could race as a team. In the women's race,

:15:16. > :15:22.you have Amanda McGrory from the USA, Manuela Schar, probably two or

:15:23. > :15:26.three McGrath is that could challenge, Tatyana McFadden is not

:15:27. > :15:30.here this year. She raced in Boston, but she had a problem with blood

:15:31. > :15:36.clots and was advised not to travel. On paper, she looked favourites to

:15:37. > :15:40.win. On current standing, we are expecting fast times from the men

:15:41. > :15:46.and women. Thank you so much. We will hook up with you later. Those

:15:47. > :15:50.wheelchair racers going off first this morning. They will be going

:15:51. > :15:56.very soon. On Thursday there was an incredible programme, mind over

:15:57. > :15:59.marathon. It involved eight group of runners that suffered various mental

:16:00. > :16:04.health issues. They are going to run it for the first time. The charity

:16:05. > :16:07.of the year this year is Heads Together, led by the Duke and

:16:08. > :16:14.Duchess of Cambridge and Prince Harry. The aim is to end the stigma

:16:15. > :16:23.of mental health and raise greater awareness.

:16:24. > :16:27.If you missed the documentary, it was very powerful.

:16:28. > :16:33.A lot of people with mental health issues hide it. You wear a mask

:16:34. > :16:38.every day. People think depression is about feeling sad, it's not. It's

:16:39. > :16:41.mostly about feeling nothing, completely hollow. For ten runners

:16:42. > :16:45.lining up this morning, just being on the start line is a huge

:16:46. > :16:49.achievement. Earlier this year, they were set a challenge by the Heads

:16:50. > :16:57.Together campaign, led by the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and Prince

:16:58. > :16:59.Harry. They started training to run the London Marathon, despite

:17:00. > :17:03.suffering from a range of mental health issues. It is estimated one

:17:04. > :17:06.in four people will seek professional help for the mental

:17:07. > :17:11.health at some point in their lives. It is a huge and growing problem. As

:17:12. > :17:14.a nation, we need to grow this. Talking about mental health is best

:17:15. > :17:18.for everybody, it doesn't matter who you are. None of them had run

:17:19. > :17:24.before, and the aim was to show how exercise can be a helpful part of

:17:25. > :17:27.treatment. One of the ten runners is Rhian Burke. Her mental health

:17:28. > :17:31.issues began five years ago, when her one-year-old son, George,

:17:32. > :17:36.tragically died from pneumonia. Five days later, her husband committed

:17:37. > :17:43.suicide. When I heard he had also passed away, my life as I knew it

:17:44. > :17:50.was over. Me, as a person, changed for ever. The effect it has on you

:17:51. > :17:59.as a person, I used to be very bubbly and confident, but, inside, I

:18:00. > :18:02.feel dead myself. For Rhian and the other runners, taking part in the

:18:03. > :18:06.marathon has given them well needed focus. There has been plenty of

:18:07. > :18:09.support on hand from the charity's founders, for whom this is an

:18:10. > :18:17.important and personal cause. I think you are incredibly strong. Can

:18:18. > :18:20.I ask you one question? When your mum passed away, you were older than

:18:21. > :18:24.my children. I worry about them growing up. They'll be OK, won't

:18:25. > :18:33.they? With a man like you, they will be absolutely fine. That's true. --

:18:34. > :18:37.mum. You never get over it, it is such a huge moment in your life. You

:18:38. > :18:41.just learn to deal with it. You being there is the most important

:18:42. > :18:45.thing. You will provide the blanket of stability and understanding that

:18:46. > :18:52.they need. I can't tell you enough, you doing this is an incredibly big,

:18:53. > :18:58.positive step. I hope it brings to you what you need. I am delighted to

:18:59. > :19:03.say that this incredible bunch of runners are with me now. I think

:19:04. > :19:09.everybody behind us here saw the documentary on Thursday. You would

:19:10. > :19:13.think we had just have a reunion of the Spice Girls or something. Such

:19:14. > :19:21.appreciation. An incredible programme. Rhiannon, can you believe

:19:22. > :19:27.you are here? No, it has been such a long time coming. I can't believe

:19:28. > :19:30.the reaction, everybody has been so supportive. You have taken some any

:19:31. > :19:33.physical and mental steps along the way to get yourself here.

:19:34. > :19:37.Physically, the challenge been everything you thought it would be

:19:38. > :19:41.and has been running being the biggest challenge? Yes, both

:19:42. > :19:45.physically and mentally challenging. Mentally, for the reasons a lot of

:19:46. > :19:50.people know. Physically, it is gruelling. It is a long, long way. A

:19:51. > :19:53.lot of us have been injured, we have struggled at times. But we are all

:19:54. > :19:58.here today. What has it meant, having each other in this group?

:19:59. > :20:02.It's meant everything. Training for the marathon would not have been an

:20:03. > :20:10.easy thing to do at all if we didn't have each other. For want of a

:20:11. > :20:15.better word, we are broken people, but to have love and respect around

:20:16. > :20:19.you is incredibly vital. Willing to do it as a group, with each other's

:20:20. > :20:25.support. I imagine there might be a bit of competition four times as

:20:26. > :20:28.well? Who is the quickest? There is no competition for times. I'm not

:20:29. > :20:35.going to say who, they might attack me afterwards and tried to sabotage,

:20:36. > :20:39.but I think I might beat everybody. What are you going for? I will be

:20:40. > :20:43.happy with everything, if I get to hug people, hi-fi everybody, take in

:20:44. > :20:47.the atmosphere. I don't think that will be a problem, there is so much

:20:48. > :20:52.love and support on that route. It is an emotional day anyway, to be

:20:53. > :20:58.out there and running. What has it done for your life, Rhian Burke?

:20:59. > :21:02.out there and running. What has it done for your life, Rhian A lot, it

:21:03. > :21:05.has given me confidence, given me routine, lifted my self esteem and

:21:06. > :21:14.self worth. To know you are not alone in the journey of torment.

:21:15. > :21:18.Life goes on. I think all of us are going to take a lot from this

:21:19. > :21:22.experience. Do you think you will carry on running? Is this something

:21:23. > :21:30.that is now in your life for ever? Of all of these guys, we set off

:21:31. > :21:34.from day one, myself and Charlie, that it is for life, not just for

:21:35. > :21:36.the marathon. Whether it is walking, jogging, running, they have all

:21:37. > :21:40.understood that getting out the front door can help with mental

:21:41. > :21:45.well-being. Hopefully, the nation will recognise that. For people

:21:46. > :21:51.watching, inspiring people to get up and get moving, how it can help you,

:21:52. > :21:54.mentally, so much? We are in a beautiful place as a nation, where

:21:55. > :21:58.the conversation is now taking place. What this has done has given

:21:59. > :22:02.people a solution to that, which is fantastic. Lace up, get out the door

:22:03. > :22:06.and find a friend to do it with and it will help. We will keep across

:22:07. > :22:09.your story and watch out for you crossing the finish line. We are

:22:10. > :22:21.willing new one. The Heads Together story is so big. Ore, you have two

:22:22. > :22:30.runners? Yes, Adele Roberts and Nick Bryant. The nerves are here. How are

:22:31. > :22:39.you feeling? I feel great, but my watch tells me my heartbeat is going

:22:40. > :22:46.really fast! This is a lie in for you guys? I start my show at 2am, I

:22:47. > :22:49.don't mind being awake at this time. A Royal exchange for you earlier

:22:50. > :22:54.this week. What was the motivation? Prince William and the Duchess,

:22:55. > :23:04.Kate, came to work, to radio one, to wish us luck. They gave us tote

:23:05. > :23:07.bags, with goodies. A banana, orange juice, which I dreamt last night,

:23:08. > :23:13.because I didn't have any drinks in the fridge. I was shovelling down

:23:14. > :23:18.tuna pasta last night. It has been a whirlwind journey. I only found out

:23:19. > :23:32.in January. The wait is almost over. Best of luck.

:23:33. > :23:39.You can see the wheelchair racers were getting ready to start, this is

:23:40. > :23:45.the Blue Start. There are three starts, the Blue Start, the Red

:23:46. > :23:53.Start and the Green Start. The Elite Women and the Elite Men's wheelchair

:23:54. > :24:00.racers. There is Manuela Schar, Miranda McGrory.

:24:01. > :24:04.The different courses have huge effects on wheelchair racing in

:24:05. > :24:11.particular. You can see Jade Jones there. We will be looking to see if

:24:12. > :24:16.she can post a decent time today. Amanda McGrory, she lost out to

:24:17. > :24:29.Manuela Schar in Boston, but got the better of the Swiss athlete. There

:24:30. > :24:35.is the dominant Tatyana McFadden, missing Boston to do but clots, so

:24:36. > :24:40.Manuela Schar has been the athletes to beat. There is the man to beat

:24:41. > :24:46.for the men's race, Marcel Hug. 31 years old, the Swiss athlete. He was

:24:47. > :24:50.in David Weir's shadow for a while. The tables have turned. Second here

:24:51. > :25:05.last year, Kurt firmly. -- Kurt Fearnley. There will be some

:25:06. > :25:09.noise for this man. This, his 18th London Marathon. Six times a winner.

:25:10. > :25:14.A magical four gold medals in the Paralympics in London.

:25:15. > :25:22.Last year he finished third and he struggled in Rio. What can he

:25:23. > :25:25.achieve here? Heather Stanning, getting under way. Tanni

:25:26. > :25:29.Grey-Thompson, we have been chatting a lot about this, the difficulties

:25:30. > :25:33.of the course. So different to Boston, which they raced recently.

:25:34. > :25:38.For wheelchair racers, it is a quick course. This can be fiddly? The

:25:39. > :25:45.London Marathon course twists and turns. The profile drops in the

:25:46. > :25:48.first ten kilometres. Quite early you started in roundabouts, there

:25:49. > :25:52.are speed ramps for the first mile and a half. We have a big pack of

:25:53. > :25:56.men on the right-hand side. Everybody wants to try to jump into

:25:57. > :25:59.the draft, because it makes such an advantage. Marcel Hug is taking it

:26:00. > :26:04.out, he will want to control the race. Kurt Fearnley is in second.

:26:05. > :26:08.David Weir needs to run a smart race. He doesn't want to do too much

:26:09. > :26:12.at the front to conserve his energy. It is so different to the other

:26:13. > :26:16.races we will see today in terms of how you recover. People say, my

:26:17. > :26:20.goodness, they raced in Boston and they are racing again here. It is a

:26:21. > :26:24.different thing, you put in effort throughout the course, but you have

:26:25. > :26:28.time to rest as well. We will run through some of the main runners and

:26:29. > :26:36.riders. We will look down the course. You have the Blue Start, Red

:26:37. > :26:39.Start and Green Start, they converge eventually. These are some of the

:26:40. > :26:44.main contenders in the men's race. This is how they are standing, from

:26:45. > :26:59.the World Para Athletics World Cup. Marcel Hug is the favourite in this

:27:00. > :27:03.today. Ernest Van as well. It has all changed, without Tatyana

:27:04. > :27:14.McFadden. She has won the last four here. Without her, Manuela Schar is

:27:15. > :27:19.the one to look out for. Susannah Scaroni worked with her at the

:27:20. > :27:22.University of Illinois. It looks like they are settling down into a

:27:23. > :27:26.different race, the women, they are not trying to jump into the pack

:27:27. > :27:30.with the men. Around these bends, when it starts bunching up, you have

:27:31. > :27:39.to be careful. There is not much space. They are probably pushing

:27:40. > :27:43.1890 mph. -- 18 or 19 mph. Marcel Hug is looking very comfortable at

:27:44. > :27:46.the moment. In the green chair behind, you can see Simon Lawson,

:27:47. > :27:52.who had a fantastic Boston Marathon on Monday and did a huge personal

:27:53. > :27:57.best. He is now the fastest Briton. It is interesting that you talk

:27:58. > :28:06.about Simon Lawson, he is a T53 racer, which means he would be more

:28:07. > :28:12.impeded than T54s. There is also a T52 race taking place as well. They

:28:13. > :28:18.have slightly less function? T52, that is very limited hand function,

:28:19. > :28:22.they will be posting slow times, they pushed differently to the 5354,

:28:23. > :28:28.who have stomach function and full chest function. It is looking a big

:28:29. > :28:33.pack of athlete at the moment. Simon Lawson is looking in a good

:28:34. > :28:41.position. David Weir in third place, looking very comfortable. This is a

:28:42. > :28:47.good review to see techniques involved, to see the chairs that

:28:48. > :28:51.they use. They are high spec. You put in a few punches, you can set up

:28:52. > :28:54.and look around. In the first five kilometres, there is a very steep

:28:55. > :29:01.downhill section, from Woolwich, towards the Thames. They can build

:29:02. > :29:08.up some huge speed? Down shooters Hill they could be going up 35 or 40

:29:09. > :29:11.miles an hour. Marcel is having a look around. It is probably the

:29:12. > :29:15.biggest men's pack that we have had in the London Marathon for eight or

:29:16. > :29:18.nine years. It's interesting that there is already this number of

:29:19. > :29:30.people that are staying together. On the left-hand side, we have Heinz

:29:31. > :29:34.Frei from Switzerland. This is a difficult part of the course. I drew

:29:35. > :29:38.breath, because if you are drafting behind people, you can't save which

:29:39. > :29:40.way people are moving. You are not necessarily going to see where some

:29:41. > :29:50.of the barriers are. Off they go to deal with all of the

:29:51. > :29:54.road furniture there, the speed bumps and traffic islands. We will

:29:55. > :30:00.head back to the start. Because also taking place here today, the IPC

:30:01. > :30:07.Marathon World Cup braces, different categories, T11-12, men and women,

:30:08. > :30:13.and we will explain these, men keep 35, we have seen the real chair

:30:14. > :30:23.race. -- the wheelchair race. Away they go here.

:30:24. > :30:30.Also here you have T11-12, the para-athletes with severe visual

:30:31. > :30:37.impairments, they run with guys, that is a race for men and women.

:30:38. > :30:45.T13 para-athletes is for visual impairments. T45/46 are for lower

:30:46. > :30:48.and upper arm impairments. These are the athletes running here, they have

:30:49. > :30:52.to have very good guide runners who do all their training with them as

:30:53. > :30:59.well. Again a very strong Japanese contingent here. Off they go in the

:31:00. > :31:05.World Para Athletics Marathon World Cup. This is the T11-12 Starc list.

:31:06. > :31:18.Again, he records she and Kumagai of Japan will be contenders there. A

:31:19. > :31:23.huge contingent over from Japan. Tim Prendergast in the T13, he has been

:31:24. > :31:30.based here a while, he goes for New Zealand. T45/46, the para-athletes

:31:31. > :31:34.with lower and upper arm impairments, this is just men in

:31:35. > :31:42.this category, no women running in this category today. Derek Rae goes

:31:43. > :31:46.for Great Britain. So, back out of the wheelchair races and a reminder,

:31:47. > :31:50.you might be watching the London Marathon for the first time, but

:31:51. > :31:53.they are pretty far east, they start in Greenwich and head further east,

:31:54. > :31:59.Shooters Hill Road out towards Woolwich, then down towards the

:32:00. > :32:03.Thames and head back West. Still on the south side of the Thames, they

:32:04. > :32:08.eventually will cross, at about the halfway stage, at Tower Bridge, then

:32:09. > :32:13.back towards Canary Wharf, back down the embankment towards Buckingham

:32:14. > :32:18.Palace and home. Marcel Hug took them out, but the best way to think

:32:19. > :32:22.of this is perhaps not in terms of standard marathons but in terms of

:32:23. > :32:25.cycling races because that is how it works, with packs, drafting,

:32:26. > :32:30.athletes working off each other. It is much more similar to cycling than

:32:31. > :32:35.to running. That is why the athletes can race back to back, most of the

:32:36. > :32:41.field have done Tokyo, Boston, sale next week. The recovery is much

:32:42. > :32:43.quicker because it is about momentum, not gravity, it does not

:32:44. > :32:47.put as much pressure on your body and if you are in the middle of the

:32:48. > :32:52.pack, we can see David Weir in the blue top there, he is getting a

:32:53. > :32:56.draft, conserving lots of energy. It is a really good place for them to

:32:57. > :33:00.beat. The danger at this stage with such a good pack, you may get some

:33:01. > :33:05.people who go for a do or die move and try to sprint of the front and

:33:06. > :33:10.one a brave race. It is way too early to do that at the moment. We

:33:11. > :33:15.talked about David Weir, there will be a lot of attention on him but he

:33:16. > :33:19.was confident when he spoke to us a few days ago. I am happy to be in

:33:20. > :33:23.good shape to compete, I don't put that pressure on my shoulders. I

:33:24. > :33:28.wait until the morning and see how I feel, but I'm in pretty good shape,

:33:29. > :33:34.I'm happy with my performance over the last couple of weeks. I won the

:33:35. > :33:38.Paris Marathon in a good time, I broke away from the field at 21

:33:39. > :33:43.miles, I felt pretty strong, and it has given me a lot of confidence for

:33:44. > :33:47.Sunday's race. David Weir, he is part of this pack that got to the

:33:48. > :33:51.second mile in about 3.48, slightly slower than the first mile but there

:33:52. > :33:55.is such difference, I walked the course yesterday, the undulations,

:33:56. > :34:00.which obviously for the runners later on is a bit of a factor but

:34:01. > :34:10.for the wheelchair race as it is exaggerated tenfold. Yes, they all

:34:11. > :34:13.talk about the wheelchair race being a series of sprints joined together

:34:14. > :34:15.because you have to turn around the bends, the up and down the course,

:34:16. > :34:20.constantly digging. You can see now as we are getting to a faster bit of

:34:21. > :34:24.the course, Cassidy on the left-hand side, he is always quick to pick out

:34:25. > :34:28.in a park with his bride wheels, it takes some time to built to the back

:34:29. > :34:32.of the pack. They are coasting downhill now, probably hitting 30

:34:33. > :34:35.miles an hour at the moment. You cannot quite see the speed but this

:34:36. > :34:40.is where it gets interesting because of coming around the bends. They are

:34:41. > :34:45.splitting up at the pack. To come back together. You work in coaching

:34:46. > :34:49.the lot and so much is about Ebbo dynamics, you think of time trials

:34:50. > :34:56.on a bike, it is about load and narrow as well. They do so much work

:34:57. > :34:59.on the aerodynamics. They are all trying to talk down and not lift

:35:00. > :35:03.their head too much, always a potentially dangerous part of the

:35:04. > :35:06.course because if you are not looking where you are giving you

:35:07. > :35:09.could hit a bump and at this speed even hitting a stone on the road

:35:10. > :35:14.will take you out of the chair. It is learning not to panic at this

:35:15. > :35:18.point in the race, because you will make that distance back up. But it

:35:19. > :35:25.is interesting to see how the Japanese athletes are racing,

:35:26. > :35:28.slightly as a team at the moment, I would have expected as the Ernst van

:35:29. > :35:32.Dyk and Kurt Fearnley nearer to the brunt, but they might still have a

:35:33. > :35:36.bit of lactic in their arms from the weekend, so not being too brave at

:35:37. > :35:39.the moment. You said before the race won of the groups who would not be

:35:40. > :35:44.afraid of the downhill is the Japanese athletes and it was

:35:45. > :35:47.Hiroyuki Yamamoto leading down there so they have had the breeder down

:35:48. > :35:50.they'll come around the roundabout, closer to the Thames now but

:35:51. > :35:53.Yamamoto is still leading them out at the moment, but the pack will

:35:54. > :36:14.come together as they head deeper into the course.

:36:15. > :36:16.Don't forget you can continue watching uninterrupted

:36:17. > :36:18.coverage of all the elite races - including the wheelchair races -

:36:19. > :36:30.Don't forget to send us your messages using the hashtag,

:36:31. > :36:34.#GetInspired. And the sun has come out here at the Red Start, it really

:36:35. > :36:39.is now building up to be a fantastic atmosphere. I wish I could get

:36:40. > :36:47.through to you the smell of Deep Heat which is prevailing here!

:36:48. > :36:51.If running the London Marathon was not enough for you today, how about

:36:52. > :36:53.getting up a bit earlier and getting married? That is exactly what these

:36:54. > :37:02.two lovely people did this morning. At 7:30 this morning

:37:03. > :37:11.that is what 35-year-old Man and wife, congratulations! Whose

:37:12. > :37:18.idea was this? I'm afraid it was mine. Duncan proposed three weeks

:37:19. > :37:22.before he was diagnosed -- before I was diagnosed with an aggressive

:37:23. > :37:26.breast cancer and it could have ripped us apart. Two and amazing

:37:27. > :37:30.charities gave me back my smile and reminded me of what it is we are all

:37:31. > :37:35.fighting for in life, and they gave us hope, and that is why we have

:37:36. > :37:39.gifted our wedding back to them. An incredible thing to do, selfless

:37:40. > :37:45.thing to do, and to agree to it and go along with it as well, because I

:37:46. > :37:52.think it was Jackie! It certainly was, I just kept saying yes, so here

:37:53. > :37:57.we are today! Good man! Jackie, your story goes back further than that.

:37:58. > :38:01.It does, a decade ago I had my pelvis rebuilt so I spent by 20s

:38:02. > :38:05.learning how to walk, I could not dance at my friend's wedding, and

:38:06. > :38:09.bearing in mind I have not dance that my own yet, I am risking that

:38:10. > :38:13.now. But I want to show the world that where there is a will, there is

:38:14. > :38:17.a way, and you can go a long way with the right people by your side,

:38:18. > :38:24.the right charities, and love will get you ground. It will, but not

:38:25. > :38:28.together, ladies and gentlemen, because not an Orthodox way to get

:38:29. > :38:33.married, then you have decided to go your separate ways at the start, you

:38:34. > :38:37.are a bit quicker? I am going to start by running away! My gift to

:38:38. > :38:41.Duncan for agreeing to do this and track the Great Wall of China for

:38:42. > :38:45.our honeymoon is he gets to run this in a time he wants deep. I will be

:38:46. > :38:50.bringing up the rear, hopefully not hobbling around, with my dad, who

:38:51. > :38:55.also has a hip replacement, so it will be an epic day. It will be an

:38:56. > :39:01.incredible day, the sun has come out, good conditions, nobody wants

:39:02. > :39:04.rain on their wedding day! And compression socks and erupted as

:39:05. > :39:11.well! Very fancy wedding shoes today! Very best of luck with the

:39:12. > :39:15.race, of course, and the marriage, and the honeymoon as well. When you

:39:16. > :39:18.are out on the streets of London, I guarantee you will get incredible

:39:19. > :39:23.support, the streets are lined, and today when they look at the Elite

:39:24. > :39:29.Women lots of people will recognise a familiar face, elite athlete Jo

:39:30. > :39:31.Pavey. She is one of a group of talented British women looking for

:39:32. > :39:34.qualification for the World Championships in August in London,

:39:35. > :39:42.and we caught up with her a couple of days ago.

:39:43. > :39:52.Jo Pavey, a way she goes! A glorious, glorious run! Goldsboro Jo

:39:53. > :39:56.Pavey! We haven't seen you for a while, how have you been? All right,

:39:57. > :40:03.just putting in the training, keeping going, having the focus of

:40:04. > :40:06.the London Marathon has kept me motivated and I have enjoyed the

:40:07. > :40:13.change in focus, looking forward to it. When did you make the decision,

:40:14. > :40:17.was it after radio? I presume the 2017 World Championships is

:40:18. > :40:23.something to did not want to miss? Absolutely, I would love to compete

:40:24. > :40:27.in the 2017 World Championships, home soil, fond memories of London

:40:28. > :40:30.2012 and what the home crowd feels like so that is a motivation. The

:40:31. > :40:34.marathon, though I have done a couple, it felt like a new

:40:35. > :40:38.challenge, something that would keep my motivation going, just such fond

:40:39. > :40:45.memories of competing in it before and wanting to give it another go.

:40:46. > :40:48.Jo Pavey there, debut marathon. My first marathon, which was the London

:40:49. > :40:53.Marathon, I definitely learned the hard way. People said, you have to

:40:54. > :40:56.pace yourself, it is so important, and I thought, yeah, yeah, I thought

:40:57. > :41:00.I was listening but when the gun went off I just went for it, I

:41:01. > :41:04.wanted to be competitive and I was not ready to be up with those top

:41:05. > :41:09.girls and I definitely felt delirious in the last 40 minutes of

:41:10. > :41:13.the race, trying to push myself to the finish line, thinking, I have

:41:14. > :41:18.run this really badly. You are still a novice at the Marathon so how do

:41:19. > :41:21.you approach that? I am getting older now but the Marathon is an

:41:22. > :41:25.event where I could potentially get APB. The build-up has been

:41:26. > :41:30.consistent, I have trained really hard. I have had more illness than I

:41:31. > :41:36.would have liked but any busy parent can relate to that, little ones

:41:37. > :41:39.bringing home bugs! The perfect is never -- the build-up is never

:41:40. > :41:43.perfect for any runner, you just have to deal with the ups and downs.

:41:44. > :41:46.There she is, she has run this before but she think she has eight

:41:47. > :41:50.PB in her today and she might need that if she is going to qualify for

:41:51. > :41:55.the World Championships, because there are some strong British women

:41:56. > :41:58.out there. To explain that Battle of Britain and also tell us where the

:41:59. > :42:03.elite race is going to be won, we can join our commentary team of

:42:04. > :42:09.Paula Radcliffe, Steve Cram, and, Steve, I have to say, normally I

:42:10. > :42:14.would not introduce you last, but for the very last time, welcome to

:42:15. > :42:18.Brendan Foster! His final and 37th London Marathon, an emotional day

:42:19. > :42:25.for all of us, Steve? STEVE CRAM: yes, already a tear in

:42:26. > :42:29.our eyes in the commentary box. We are hoping to have a bit of bone,

:42:30. > :42:33.with Brendan over the years it has been nothing more, certainly for me,

:42:34. > :42:37.than an massive privilege, really enjoyed having him alongside me for

:42:38. > :42:41.so many years, but he was here long before I came into this commentary

:42:42. > :42:44.box so we will talk more about Brendan during the morning and I

:42:45. > :42:51.will introduce him in just a moment. First of all, he would think it only

:42:52. > :42:55.right that we go through this elite field, as a fitting tribute to

:42:56. > :42:59.Brendan, the women's race is probably the greatest women's field

:43:00. > :43:04.we have ever had. You saw Jo Pavey there, Gabby was right, Jo has got a

:43:05. > :43:08.contest on her hand for the British quest to get into the team for the

:43:09. > :43:12.World Championships, many other athletes doing the same but these

:43:13. > :43:18.are the ones who will be contending to win the London Marathon. Mary

:43:19. > :43:21.Keitany, who has done it before. Mare Dibaba, the world champion.

:43:22. > :43:29.Some great names from the track, Tirunesh Dibaba. Those are the

:43:30. > :43:33.British athletes, Alyson Dixon who represented us in Rio last year,

:43:34. > :43:37.Charlotte Purdue looking to get onto the team, do what she did not manage

:43:38. > :43:43.to do last year, perhaps the favourite amongst the British

:43:44. > :43:47.contingent. Let's go through them individually, the main contenders.

:43:48. > :43:52.Her first ever Marathon, Olympic champion over 5000 metres, multiple

:43:53. > :43:55.world champion on the track, Vivian Cheruiyot. Racing here in London, a

:43:56. > :44:03.city she describes as her second home. Tigist Tufa knows how to win

:44:04. > :44:07.this, she did it in 2015, second last year. Mary Keitany will be the

:44:08. > :44:18.favourite, two-time winner, coming back in good form in 2017. World

:44:19. > :44:22.champion from 2015, Mare Dibaba. Ethiopia's first ever world other

:44:23. > :44:26.than champion, a surprising fact, considering the likes of Tirunesh

:44:27. > :44:32.Dibaba over the years, still getting to grips with the Marathon event. We

:44:33. > :44:36.talked about this British battle which we will follow, Charlotte

:44:37. > :44:39.Purdue, Alyson Dixon, Susan Partridge, Jo Pavey, one or two

:44:40. > :44:45.others to watch out for as well, so we will keep you well informed right

:44:46. > :44:49.through the next 2.5 hours or so. Here they go, then, the 2017 Elite

:44:50. > :44:56.women's field, ready to go. The countdown to what we hope will

:44:57. > :45:17.be a classic race. Our two Olympic heroes look down on

:45:18. > :45:21.this stellar field as they had off on their own private quest. The

:45:22. > :45:30.Elite Women get the roads all to themselves. Pacemakers, wearing

:45:31. > :45:40.black and white stripes. For those that don't know, it is the club

:45:41. > :45:45.strip of Shaftesbury Harriers. It's not a nod towards the great

:45:46. > :45:49.Newcastle United supporter, who is going to be sitting here for the

:45:50. > :45:53.final time, Brendan Foster. I was not going to mention the football

:45:54. > :45:57.this early! But I was looking forward to mentioning it later on,

:45:58. > :46:01.because things are changing in the football world in the north-east. I

:46:02. > :46:05.am sure that will come later. This is a significant event these days.

:46:06. > :46:12.This is a great field. One of the best fields we have ever seen in

:46:13. > :46:15.London. A real race here, where women take centre stage. That is

:46:16. > :46:16.absolutely the right thing. Wonderful to see. Paula, you must

:46:17. > :46:23.feel the same call? Wonderful to see. Paula, you must

:46:24. > :46:25.feel the same Yes, I am looking at perfect conditions, perfect

:46:26. > :46:30.temperature, hardly a breath of wind. The sun is already out in

:46:31. > :46:38.Blackheath. It is starting to peek through at the finish, at the Mall.

:46:39. > :46:44.It is a great place to come and run, and know you are in shape, go out

:46:45. > :46:49.there, absorb the atmosphere. I remember my dad, when I did my first

:46:50. > :46:54.run, 2002, saying, you will get to the Isle of Dogs and there is nobody

:46:55. > :46:58.there, you have to keep your focus. It is packed today, there will not

:46:59. > :47:02.be one quiet spot. I said it is one of the greatest fields, full of

:47:03. > :47:05.world champions, world record holders on the track, full of

:47:06. > :47:11.Olympic champions. But the world record holder is sitting here, we

:47:12. > :47:15.have been listening to her. Mary Keitany and others will be chasing

:47:16. > :47:19.what they hope will be eight quick time today. It can sometimes be

:47:20. > :47:24.confusing for those that are not aficionados. There is a world record

:47:25. > :47:30.for the women only race, also held by Paula Radcliffe, apart from the

:47:31. > :47:34.fastest time ever run, and that is 2:17.40 two. That is kind of the

:47:35. > :47:37.target today. Most of all, there will be interested in winning the

:47:38. > :47:44.London Marathon. An update on the wheelchairs?

:47:45. > :47:52.A few gaps appearing for a moment. Things are, as we expected, close

:47:53. > :47:56.together. We have a fantastic finish last year, the top ten athletes were

:47:57. > :48:00.separated by just a few seconds. We expected to be pretty much the same

:48:01. > :48:04.again in the men's race. Just a few bits of road furniture to deal with.

:48:05. > :48:08.You get an idea of the twisting and turning nature of the course, as

:48:09. > :48:12.they come round Cutty Sark, about ten kilometres, just beyond six

:48:13. > :48:20.miles or so. The likely contenders are still up there, Tanni? The

:48:21. > :48:23.biggest pack we have had for some time. The Cutty Sark is the real

:48:24. > :48:28.challenge. You lose a lot of speed, there are speed ramps, drops up and

:48:29. > :48:35.down. The road surface is not always that good. Potholes in the road, but

:48:36. > :48:40.can move the pack around. You see athletes starting to spread around.

:48:41. > :48:45.Like cycling, you come wide to get around the bend. It is looking

:48:46. > :48:52.really good at the moment for the number of guys that are there. Yes,

:48:53. > :48:56.we have the top 18. 18 who are really a little bit clear of the

:48:57. > :49:04.rest. All of the likely contenders up there, David Weir, Marcel Hug,

:49:05. > :49:09.Kurt Fearnley, Ernst van Dyk South Africa. We expect to see and Welsh

:49:10. > :49:11.are winning this one, she is a clearer favourite than we have in

:49:12. > :49:17.the men's event. We will update you once again with the wheelchair

:49:18. > :49:26.racers later on. -- we expect to see Manuela Schar winning. The Elite

:49:27. > :49:29.Women's race, Kiplagat coming to the front. To elaborate on the British

:49:30. > :49:34.women, there are three places available, most of the women in the

:49:35. > :49:37.field in contention already have qualifying times for the World

:49:38. > :49:42.Championship. It is a case of the top three, Jo Pavey will be hoping

:49:43. > :49:48.she can get in there with Charlotte Purdue, Aly Dixon, they are the

:49:49. > :49:52.favourites, if you like. We will be trying to keep an eye on how that

:49:53. > :49:56.goes. Charlotte Purdue is rumoured, I was talking to Charlie over the

:49:57. > :50:01.last couple of days, she seems very relaxed. The diminutive figure, with

:50:02. > :50:12.the blonde hair, the back. Jo Pavey, and then Aly Dixon, the Sunderland

:50:13. > :50:13.Strollers. We have four or five that will be hoping this is their

:50:14. > :50:30.day-to-day. Charlotte Carter pacing and athlete.

:50:31. > :50:35.They are all wearing black shirts as well, normally it is black and white

:50:36. > :50:41.stripes and red shorts. I am sure it is just for you! You are just egging

:50:42. > :50:44.me on. I am going to say it now, things have changed in the

:50:45. > :50:48.north-east. Last year, Newcastle got relegated, you sent me a text,

:50:49. > :50:51.saying, here is the route to get the Burton Albion. To be honest with

:50:52. > :50:55.you, I will return that text to you this year! And I am going to tell

:50:56. > :50:59.you that Fleetwood are going well. You might be visiting them next

:51:00. > :51:03.season. I have got that out of the way. 1-1, now! I look forward to

:51:04. > :51:14.visiting both of those wonderful towns. Anyway... More of that later.

:51:15. > :51:18.The women's elite, they have struggled, the organisers, when you

:51:19. > :51:23.are going to run at a record pace, you find good pacemakers, getting

:51:24. > :51:27.them is quite difficult. There is one pacemaker for the lead group,

:51:28. > :51:35.plenty of them asked to go with the pace. They will be running at around

:51:36. > :51:39.218 pace until halfway and then see what happens. They have gone through

:51:40. > :51:43.the first mile in 515. They are well upon the schedule that they asked

:51:44. > :51:48.for. In the first mile, you want to stretch your legs, see how good

:51:49. > :51:53.people are feeling, get rid of some of the nerves and butterflies, and

:51:54. > :51:57.settle down into the pace they want to set. They are dropping back a

:51:58. > :52:02.little bit. Already, Mary Keitany is committing herself at the front. One

:52:03. > :52:06.piece of news that athletics fans will be aware of his last year's

:52:07. > :52:13.winner, the Olympic champion, not here. If you remember what happened

:52:14. > :52:29.last year, it was a really dramatic race last year. We had a couple of

:52:30. > :52:32.people falling. You might remember that Jemima Sumgong had quite a

:52:33. > :52:36.heavy fall. But she came on to win the race, and then went on to win

:52:37. > :52:41.the Olympic title. A month ago, she was found to have tested positive

:52:42. > :52:46.for EPO. Let's hear the thoughts of Jo Pavey. I think it is a shame that

:52:47. > :52:50.you have a winner like Jemima Sumgong testing positive. They are

:52:51. > :52:54.just ruining the sport. We are glad she has been caught. That is one

:52:55. > :53:00.thing to say. You had so many years when you did not really hear about

:53:01. > :53:06.come petition testing happening in Kenya. -- competition testing. The

:53:07. > :53:09.fact that is happening now is fine. But it is a shame that there are

:53:10. > :53:12.still people cheating the system and ruining the name of the sport. You

:53:13. > :53:16.want to believe a good performance, you want to look at athletes winning

:53:17. > :53:18.the Olympics and big events and admire their performance. People

:53:19. > :53:21.like her are ruining the sport. Every time you see a good

:53:22. > :53:26.performance, you are wondering, is that for real or not?

:53:27. > :53:32.As ever, pretty strong words from Jo Pavey. We should mention the fact

:53:33. > :53:38.that the positive test was part of a wider testing programme that the

:53:39. > :53:43.World Marathon Majors, including the London Marathon, contributed funding

:53:44. > :53:48.towards, which resulted in that, in and out of competition test. We have

:53:49. > :53:54.to say, the B sample has not been tested yet, she failed the A test.

:53:55. > :53:59.It does reflect rather poorly on Elite Women's racing, particularly

:54:00. > :54:04.on the roads and Marathon? It certainly does. When you look at it,

:54:05. > :54:06.you have this young lady from Kenya, Jemima Sumgong, she has robbed the

:54:07. > :54:11.sport of a fantastic London Marathon last year. She robbed the sport of

:54:12. > :54:15.that performance in the Olympic Games. You cannot continue taking

:54:16. > :54:21.the goodness out of a sport like this. The great athletes we have had

:54:22. > :54:30.from Kenya, they are equally as dismayed, including Mary Keitany. At

:54:31. > :54:33.least with the new regime, Seb Coe and the IAAF, they are going after

:54:34. > :54:38.them in a big way. Thank goodness for that, let's hope for the future,

:54:39. > :54:41.when we are watching performances, watching athletes like Mary Keitany,

:54:42. > :54:46.knowing that there is no cheating going on. You cannot continue in a

:54:47. > :54:50.sport where you can believe what you see. That last point about not

:54:51. > :54:53.believing what you see, unfortunately, it reflects on

:54:54. > :54:58.performances from others. We have had a new world record in the half

:54:59. > :55:02.marathon recently. Inevitably, people just point the finger. We

:55:03. > :55:06.don't know one way or another. It just takes the belief system away,

:55:07. > :55:11.doesn't it? Absolutely, that is what it is about, having the credibility

:55:12. > :55:14.there. The credibility for people watching the sport, parents taking

:55:15. > :55:18.their children to the tracks to get them involved. And for the other

:55:19. > :55:21.athletes, they have the right to be able to put in a good performance

:55:22. > :55:26.and have people believe that, show it is the best that they can do.

:55:27. > :55:29.What is happening when we don't have a good enough testing system in

:55:30. > :55:33.place that all of the cheats are being caught, and when we get more

:55:34. > :55:39.and more people being caught from the same country, there is a case to

:55:40. > :55:43.argue about whether Kenya should be subject to some kind of ban, in the

:55:44. > :55:46.same way that Russia was? I don't think it is as institutionalised in

:55:47. > :55:52.Kenya. But there are fingers pointed at other Kenyan athletes because of

:55:53. > :55:55.what some athletes in Kenya have chosen to do, they have chosen to

:55:56. > :55:59.cheat and they have damaged the reputation of their country. I think

:56:00. > :56:02.the difference is, in Russia, it is institutionalised cheating. In

:56:03. > :56:06.Kenya, it is random cheating by people looking for an advantage. The

:56:07. > :56:10.great distance running nation of Kenya has fantastic athletes, and a

:56:11. > :56:14.huge number of them have been legitimate. But when you look at

:56:15. > :56:19.that run in the of the games, I described Jemima Sumgong's run as

:56:20. > :56:23.textbook distance running. Really, it wasn't. It was textbook cheating.

:56:24. > :56:28.I am horrified that it actually happened. A great nation, let down

:56:29. > :56:46.by an athlete, Jemima Sumgong. We will head further into the

:56:47. > :56:49.course, and the Elite Wheelchair racers, the men, it is still a

:56:50. > :56:55.pretty big group which is out in front. Almost those 18 that we

:56:56. > :56:58.talked about at the last update, you can see Marcel Hug in second place,

:56:59. > :57:11.ahead of David Weir and Kurt Fearnley, with the vest. Behind

:57:12. > :57:14.that, the Japanese racer Yoshida. They are not far from crossing the

:57:15. > :57:23.river. They will go around the entire course in about one hour 20.

:57:24. > :57:26.The current pace, the men are lucky about one hour 25. The first half is

:57:27. > :57:31.quicker than the second, so they might lose a couple of seconds. Josh

:57:32. > :57:37.Cassidy, from Canada, looks like he's having a bit of a break. It

:57:38. > :57:41.looks like he doesn't want many people in the pack. He is looking

:57:42. > :57:45.over his shoulder, so it doesn't look like a serious attempt. He has

:57:46. > :57:50.got his head down. He is good and downhill. He won Boston a couple of

:57:51. > :57:56.years ago, got the best time. He is playing to his strength, which is

:57:57. > :58:00.really important. Trying to adopt the tactic of trying to hypnotise

:58:01. > :58:06.his rivals with those wheels! The women's race, the three we

:58:07. > :58:14.highlighted at the start, Manuela Schar, skip leg Susannah Scaroni,

:58:15. > :58:16.Amanda McGrory, they have broken clear. The three that we thought

:58:17. > :58:23.would be contending in the women's are clear. Josh Cassidy is having a

:58:24. > :58:28.go here. It is not a breakaway, it is just something where the pack

:58:29. > :58:38.will bring him back in. We can join the women's race. The news already

:58:39. > :58:41.is that Mary Keitany has decided that the fast-paced that had been

:58:42. > :58:45.asked for, the others are sitting off this. That is a little

:58:46. > :58:49.surprising. You can understand Vivian Cheruiyot thinking, it is my

:58:50. > :58:53.first marathon, I won't go for it. The second mile was below five

:58:54. > :58:57.minutes. It is a quicker mile, they have broken away early. My concern

:58:58. > :59:05.for Mary would be that there is only one pacemaker here. I feel sorry for

:59:06. > :59:11.her! She could have a lonely run today. She has asked for fast pace.

:59:12. > :59:15.She has broken away from the leading pack at a fast stage, not even at

:59:16. > :59:20.five kilometres. She means business? She certainly does. This is the fast

:59:21. > :59:26.mile, now, the third mile, when it is downhill. But she ran 4.59 for

:59:27. > :59:29.the second mile. I think the girls behind are absolutely on the pace

:59:30. > :59:36.that they asked for, and she is way ahead of that. I mean, she is ahead

:59:37. > :59:39.of the pace that I ran in 2003 at the moment. She definitely has the

:59:40. > :59:43.bit between her teeth and is really attacking today. I don't feel too

:59:44. > :59:51.sorry for her, I didn't get a pacemaker that went past five miles!

:59:52. > :59:55.I am going to get a lot of all our yesterday's from Brendan and Paula

:59:56. > :59:58.today. Sertic stall out very early today. Already a 50-metre lead on

:59:59. > :00:01.the rest of this brilliant pack in 2017 London Marathon. A long way to

:00:02. > :00:18.go, which we always say. I have repositioned to the start and

:00:19. > :00:21.the behind me, full of anticipation about the royal starters who will be

:00:22. > :00:27.coming along a bit later, because it is not long now until the Elite Men

:00:28. > :00:33.and masses go off on their 26.2 mile journey. And there is added

:00:34. > :00:37.poignancy and in motion today to this incredible human race following

:00:38. > :00:43.the recent and shocking at Westminster.

:00:44. > :00:50.Just a month ago a terrorist attack tour at the heart of London. Five

:00:51. > :00:55.people simply going about their business will not return home, will

:00:56. > :01:05.never return home. PC Keith Palmer, Aysha Frade, Kurt Cochran, Lesley

:01:06. > :01:10.Rhodes, Andreea Cristea. The collective shock and horror was soon

:01:11. > :01:15.replaced by capital defiance, a determination not to be cowed, a

:01:16. > :01:20.city replenishing its soul but never to be quite the same again. Today is

:01:21. > :01:25.the first time since the Westminster attacks that London can truly come

:01:26. > :01:31.together as one United capital. Massive unified in a celebration of

:01:32. > :01:36.humanity, most healing. And it is the way that we know and

:01:37. > :01:40.love London, and we will see that hopefully a little bit later on

:01:41. > :01:44.today but I have got two very special people with me now who are

:01:45. > :01:50.running today with memories of people lost in that attack and also

:01:51. > :01:52.running for the police dependents trust. Mauro Pizzale and Julie

:01:53. > :02:01.Henderson. Tell us your connection to the attacks. I was running

:02:02. > :02:06.already the Marathon and then that terrible tragedy happened, so I

:02:07. > :02:20.decided to dedicate this run and start raising money for the

:02:21. > :02:26.families. It touched everybody, family, colleagues, so I tried to do

:02:27. > :02:30.my best for John and for the girls and me with the run and everybody

:02:31. > :02:35.else with the fundraising, so it is a special day. And you will get so

:02:36. > :02:39.much support out there on the streets of London, and the beauty of

:02:40. > :02:41.this event is not just the support and camaraderie but the

:02:42. > :02:46.international flavour, that is what we know and love about London. That

:02:47. > :02:52.is what London is about, I have been here for 20 years and it has been

:02:53. > :02:57.amazing, it is such a special place, so many different nationalities,

:02:58. > :03:01.multicultural, that is what we want. Inspector Julie Henderson, can I

:03:02. > :03:06.just cut across you, Mauro, to get into Julie, you were on duty on the

:03:07. > :03:09.day of the attacks, what was your role? I was responsible for the

:03:10. > :03:13.intelligence response to what happened on the day, we needed to

:03:14. > :03:17.find out what happened, where it happened and get the information to

:03:18. > :03:28.the troops as quickly as we could. I already had a

:03:29. > :03:31.place in the Marathon, so I dedicated it to the Police

:03:32. > :03:33.Dependence Trust. They support the families of officers who have been

:03:34. > :03:35.killed and provide financial support and occupational health soap --

:03:36. > :03:37.occupational health support, counselling and things like that,

:03:38. > :03:41.they need ?2.5 million per year to keep running so I am trying to raise

:03:42. > :03:45.money to make sure we can continue to support those who help us all. We

:03:46. > :03:49.saw you yesterday go down to the point of the attacks and lay a

:03:50. > :03:53.wreath, already there have been so many floral tributes and candles

:03:54. > :03:58.laid at that point. You must see the best and worst of mankind but does

:03:59. > :04:02.it always surprise you how incredible people are in times like

:04:03. > :04:06.this? Yes, yesterday, and on the day in question, it shows how powerful

:04:07. > :04:10.we all are when we all come together and nothing will take us down, we

:04:11. > :04:14.unite together as a community and that is police, emergency services,

:04:15. > :04:19.members of the public as well. Only good things come from bad stuff, and

:04:20. > :04:21.we do see a lot of things that nobody should ever see but we also

:04:22. > :04:36.see the best of everything as well, it is a great job to have and I love

:04:37. > :04:39.it. You have policed the Marathon in recent years so you know what it

:04:40. > :04:42.takes to get to the finish line, so best of luck to you, Julie, and to

:04:43. > :04:45.you, Mauro. OK, let's head out and have a look at some of the people

:04:46. > :04:47.you might also see out there today because you might recognise some

:04:48. > :04:49.faces, not necessarily from the elite races but there are plenty of

:04:50. > :04:51.celebrities raising money for good causes.

:04:52. > :04:58.Famous faces to spot on course today include... Match Of The Day to

:04:59. > :05:05.present a Mark Chapman, 4.5 hours is his aim. A similar target for his

:05:06. > :05:09.BBC colleague Chris Evans, Radio 2's regular London Marathon entrant. Sub

:05:10. > :05:13.four hours is the goal for former Manchester United and South African

:05:14. > :05:17.footballer Quinton Fortune. Olympic champion rower Helen Glover is no

:05:18. > :05:22.book out of water, three hours 20 years her target. And a modest 5.5

:05:23. > :05:26.hours will please ITV news reader Nina Hossain. Paralympic grower

:05:27. > :05:34.Pamela Relph has her sights set on a time just beyond four hours.

:05:35. > :05:41.Professional TV viewer boggle box's Baasit Siddiqui is on a four hour

:05:42. > :05:45.mission. Kevin Sinfield is hoping to add a London Marathon medal in four

:05:46. > :05:50.hours. Adam Woodyatt, East End is' Ian Beale, is playing it safe with

:05:51. > :05:55.an estimated finish of around seven hours. TV presenter Sian Williams

:05:56. > :06:01.thinks she is in for our 20 shape. But let's face it, to pin it at all

:06:02. > :06:03.is a major feat, whatever the time, for our runners today -- to finish

:06:04. > :06:07.at all. Feast your eyes on these famous

:06:08. > :06:13.faces, we will introduce them as we move along the line. Quite a few of

:06:14. > :06:18.them, all nervous, I'm sure, some more than others. Chris Evans, you

:06:19. > :06:22.have done this over and over, why did you keep coming back? Because

:06:23. > :06:27.these lovely people keep paying money to Children In Need to join

:06:28. > :06:31.us. They are going to New York as well, they bid lots and lots of

:06:32. > :06:36.money and they are so excited. A bit too overexcited last night! Not the

:06:37. > :06:43.perfect pre-Marathon preparation, I have to say! What do I need to

:06:44. > :06:48.know?! Guinness! I will show you the video later on! At the end of the

:06:49. > :06:53.Marathon! Good luck to all of you. Chris, everything that you guys do,

:06:54. > :06:57.brilliant. We are very excited, very lucky to be here, thank you for your

:06:58. > :07:01.support, we hope everybody has a great day, it is the best thing you

:07:02. > :07:06.can do with you have a chance. We have another barrel of people here

:07:07. > :07:16.looking forward to it, Sian has done this before, but maybe a few more

:07:17. > :07:18.nerves this time around? Yes, I think everybody is running for a

:07:19. > :07:21.reason, I am running for Heads Together, and it is a mental

:07:22. > :07:25.challenge for a lot of us and I think many people here are going to

:07:26. > :07:31.have to dig deep. I am holding your hand and I am not even running! This

:07:32. > :07:36.is not the place for recruitment! This is not happening! We will talk

:07:37. > :07:39.about is another day! Shane Williams, Quinton Fortune, Mark

:07:40. > :07:43.Chapman, the man of Steel Kevin Sinfield as well, and Baasit

:07:44. > :07:49.Siddiqui, we have got to talk to you because you will be running this

:07:50. > :07:54.race with a Kamworor going live for BBC Sport Facebook live? That is the

:07:55. > :07:59.plan, 26.2 miles with a Kamworor phone on my head trying to capture

:08:00. > :08:04.it live, so if you hear a grown man crying online, then you know what --

:08:05. > :08:09.with a camera phone on my head. My dad and my brother are putting up a

:08:10. > :08:13.fence today, so they are going to send me pictures showing that they

:08:14. > :08:18.are just chilling. I think that is called family motivation! Very best

:08:19. > :08:23.of them to all of you guys. Right on cue, the drummers have just

:08:24. > :08:27.started behind us here, they are fantastic. Enjoying them next to me,

:08:28. > :08:33.I am in an Ian Beale sandwich, which was a thing at one point! Adam

:08:34. > :08:46.Woodyatt and Sam would yet, his son. When you had the cafe, plenty of

:08:47. > :08:51.sandwiches in there! Come on, Adam! A Beale LT was actually on the wall

:08:52. > :08:54.in the cafe! Adam is actually Ian Beale in Eastenders, the longest

:08:55. > :09:03.serving, ever present here in the Marathon, almost the same in East

:09:04. > :09:07.Enders. I have only done 32 years! And now the Marathon is a father-son

:09:08. > :09:11.challenge, and there is an incredible story about you two, you

:09:12. > :09:15.are running for air ambulance and you signed up to run for that but

:09:16. > :09:21.what happened? He got hit by a car and we had to have London ambulance

:09:22. > :09:25.out and saved him, basically, put him in an induced coma at the Royal

:09:26. > :09:32.London, put back together again in a five-hour operation. How long ago?

:09:33. > :09:36.Seven months, I think, September. Seven months and you are here on the

:09:37. > :09:40.start line? I bet you did not think that would be possible? I wanted it

:09:41. > :09:45.to be possible so I worked quite hard to make sure I was recovered,

:09:46. > :09:50.and I'm here, feeling good, fully recovered physically, so, yeah, I am

:09:51. > :09:53.stoked. You have seen the web the air ambulance do so when times get

:09:54. > :10:01.hard on the course and it starts to get painful, you can dig deep and

:10:02. > :10:04.you know who you are doing it for. Yes, I have been a patron for them

:10:05. > :10:08.since 2004, so it is giving something back to them. How long

:10:09. > :10:13.will it take you? I am aiming to finish today! That is my target, I

:10:14. > :10:19.am just aiming to finish. Sam, when are you going to finish? Hopefully

:10:20. > :10:23.below 4.5 hours, I would like to have managed a sub four but I have

:10:24. > :10:28.not been able to train as much as I would have liked, so hopefully below

:10:29. > :10:34.four. Certainly a respectable time with a four in front of it, maybe

:10:35. > :10:37.seven for Adam. A father-son combination here, coming in at a

:10:38. > :10:40.more leisurely pace than the women who are going out there already on

:10:41. > :10:44.the streets of London. How is Mary Keitany getting on?

:10:45. > :10:54.STEVE CRAM: the last we saw, Mary was storming ahead, the young lady

:10:55. > :11:02.next to her getting nervous, but I think Mary Keitany might be

:11:03. > :11:05.overcooking this a bit. She was on about 2.11 pace, probably quicker

:11:06. > :11:09.than any of the British men will run today, which is a bit silly early

:11:10. > :11:13.on. Mary is a great athlete, knows what she is doing normally, but has

:11:14. > :11:18.gone off at a crazy place, I think Wade to past, we will have to watch

:11:19. > :11:24.that, as we look at the chasing group, Tracy Barlow at the back of

:11:25. > :11:28.that group, I think that is. No, this is the chasing group, the

:11:29. > :11:32.British are a bit further behind, actually. The British group has

:11:33. > :11:39.started pretty quickly, actually, obviously heading at around 2.28

:11:40. > :11:49.pace but they are a bit inside that, 17.25 in the first five K, but the

:11:50. > :11:55.gap, Mary Keitany is leaving Tirunesh Dibaba, Vivian Cheruiyot,

:11:56. > :12:02.who are running more sensibly, it is she going to pay for this? This is

:12:03. > :12:08.the nominally quick to be running, even for a half marathon. Mary

:12:09. > :12:14.Keitany has run very fast in the half marathon, 65.13, and she is not

:12:15. > :12:18.far off that pace. What she will be seen, on the lead car in front of

:12:19. > :12:22.them, they now see the cumulative time that they are running, the last

:12:23. > :12:28.kilometre split, and the predicted finish time, so at one point in this

:12:29. > :12:31.race she will have seen 2:10.41 pop-up that predicted finish line

:12:32. > :12:52.and if that does not make her think she is going to

:12:53. > :12:55.quit, either she is in outstanding shape and extremely, extremely

:12:56. > :12:58.confident, or hopefully is going a little bit too fast too early in

:12:59. > :13:01.this race. She has done that before, she did that in New York in the

:13:02. > :13:04.Marathon in 2011, she set off at a very fast pace, went through in

:13:05. > :13:06.about 67 for the half and really paid for it in the second half.

:13:07. > :13:10.Meanwhile in the wheelchair races, Tower Bridge, the men's wheelchair

:13:11. > :13:14.racers are some way through Tower Bridge and up. There was what we

:13:15. > :13:18.thought was a crucial break at Tower Bridge and beyond where the three

:13:19. > :13:22.main contenders, Marcel Hug, David Weir and Kurt Fearnley, broke clear,

:13:23. > :13:27.but then they were reeled back in, so this is as it stands now as they

:13:28. > :13:31.head through Wapping and out towards the Isle of Dogs and Canary Wharf,

:13:32. > :13:36.so everyone back together again, Marcel Hug, defending champion, just

:13:37. > :13:39.tucked in behind David Weir, Kurt Fearnley, this gap all still

:13:40. > :13:44.connected, in with a chance. This was as they came through Tower

:13:45. > :13:48.Bridge, they are some way past this now, all still together. We thought

:13:49. > :13:55.the gaps might open up as they came up the slight incline away from

:13:56. > :13:57.Tower Bridge but eventually they were reeled back in. Further down

:13:58. > :14:08.the course, they are all together again.

:14:09. > :14:13.Here at the start a tremendous atmosphere is building, the masses

:14:14. > :14:17.are getting ready for the start, the drummers have just played out as

:14:18. > :14:21.well. I can see the flashes of the bulbs going off because the Royals

:14:22. > :14:24.have arrived and they will be starting this race, Prince Harry and

:14:25. > :14:28.the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, whose charity, Heads Together, is

:14:29. > :14:32.the official charity this year, aiming to break the stigma of mental

:14:33. > :14:35.illness and mental health, open up that conversation to the masses.

:14:36. > :14:53.They have been doing that this week, there

:14:54. > :15:00.It means a lot to me. It's amazing. I never get tired when I am running.

:15:01. > :15:08.I just want to keep going. I could do it the whole day, to be honest.

:15:09. > :15:15.Five years ago, I came to London, to participate in the Olympics. Since

:15:16. > :15:32.that time, I haven't been back to my country. I was born in Somalia, in

:15:33. > :15:36.1991, in Mogadishu. I started when I was five years old, playing

:15:37. > :15:42.football. Then I started with basketball and ended up running.

:15:43. > :15:50.Where I lived, it wasn't acceptable for ladies to do sport.

:15:51. > :15:59.It was really difficult, especially for the ladies. They knew I was

:16:00. > :16:14.sporty, so it wasn't safe. It was my dream to represent my

:16:15. > :16:22.country. I ran the 400 metres. I was so happy. The whole nation was

:16:23. > :16:25.keeping an eye on that race. It was a clear message, showing that

:16:26. > :16:40.Somalia is still alive. Going back to my family wasn't

:16:41. > :17:00.really good... Sorry. They knew that even if I go back to

:17:01. > :17:06.Somalia, I wouldn't be safe. So it was good news for me and my family.

:17:07. > :17:14.Britain is different. It was another world to me. I ended up becoming

:17:15. > :17:27.homeless. It was hard to find where to live... Who I go with. Then I

:17:28. > :17:36.found a hostel. When I was in the hostel, I met the running director,

:17:37. > :17:41.they were working with the homeless. Zamzam was going to go first. I got

:17:42. > :17:45.back my motivation. They treated me the way I wanted to be treated. They

:17:46. > :17:53.helped me, the way I wanted to be helped. Britain is my country right

:17:54. > :17:59.now. It is where I changed my life. It is where I feel safe. This

:18:00. > :18:07.marathon is my first time running here. The reason I am running is to

:18:08. > :18:12.show the other women that live around the world, who didn't get the

:18:13. > :18:15.chance that I get, to show them, do what you want to do. Follow your

:18:16. > :18:27.mind and your heart. An incredible lady and an incredible

:18:28. > :18:31.story. Highlighting once again the power of running. We hope to be able

:18:32. > :18:36.to catch up with Zamzam later in the day. She is one of 40,000 running

:18:37. > :18:43.today. We hope she has a good day, and everybody else. Shortly we will

:18:44. > :18:49.switch to BBC One to see the man -- men and the masses depart.

:18:50. > :18:54.Most people will do it for fun or charity, so we'll do it for a

:18:55. > :19:01.personal best. Not many will do it for a record, not least a Guinness

:19:02. > :19:03.world record, which is where my fabulous friends come in. Look at

:19:04. > :19:08.this! Have you ever seen anything like it? You probably have at some

:19:09. > :19:13.stage of the London Marathon, which is what this race is all about.

:19:14. > :19:21.Susan, why don't you tell everybody what you are? I am a giant toilet

:19:22. > :19:25.roll. Of course! And the record? You'll ago the fastest marathon in a

:19:26. > :19:32.toilet roll costume, female. You have it nailed on, I am sure. Can I

:19:33. > :19:38.wipe my hands on you? We have Damian, who has gone more simple.

:19:39. > :19:42.Guinness world record, fastest marathon in Wellington boots. I've

:19:43. > :19:48.never run in them before. Not even a metre? No, they are going on ten

:19:49. > :19:55.minutes before the start. I hope you get enough spring out of them. Mr

:19:56. > :20:04.Potato Head is here, inside there, Bob? Where are you? I'm here!

:20:05. > :20:08.Through this slot. I can see you have glasses, great vision, what is

:20:09. > :20:15.the view like inside? Great, I'm fine. I need to get under five hours

:20:16. > :20:29.for a world record. You've got it! You have got it, Potato Head. Karen,

:20:30. > :20:35.or Theresa? She gave me that joke! How does it feel on the inside?

:20:36. > :20:40.Quite heavy, I didn't realise how heavy it was. But I am branching

:20:41. > :20:50.out! OK, let's keep it quick. Martin, or, as we are calling you,

:20:51. > :20:53.the fastest man dressed as a shoe? And the mystery machine, a five

:20:54. > :20:57.person effort. What are you going for, what is your target? Nobody had

:20:58. > :21:03.ever done it, we are going for six and a half hours. Scooby Doo, I'm

:21:04. > :21:10.looking at you! They stand out from the crowd. The

:21:11. > :21:21.crowds are full of anticipation for the start of the elite men's race.

:21:22. > :21:25.We will move to 1 for that. You can see them lining up. The man they

:21:26. > :21:26.have to beat is a true great of the sport.

:21:27. > :21:38.In a world where the word great to be overused, all the term legendary

:21:39. > :21:42.athlete questioned, Bekele is deserving of both tributes. He is

:21:43. > :21:45.the stellar name in the elite field. On the track, the Ethiopian

:21:46. > :21:52.long-distance runner was a dominant force. He won't five world titles

:21:53. > :21:56.and broke the 5000 and 10,000 metre world records. His 2014 transition

:21:57. > :22:01.to the roads brought him victory in his marathon debut in Paris, in a

:22:02. > :22:08.course record time. He is only just returning from injury last year, and

:22:09. > :22:11.still finished third in his London Marathon debut. He controversially

:22:12. > :22:16.missed selection for the Olympic team for Rio, only to deliver the

:22:17. > :22:21.perfect response, Triumph in the Berlin marathon in the second

:22:22. > :22:28.fastest time ever. Today, he will have Eliud Kipchoge's record in

:22:29. > :22:35.mind, and made further cement his legend with a new world record, and

:22:36. > :22:38.two hours, two minutes and 57 seconds. Only true greats can afford

:22:39. > :22:44.themselves such rarefied opportunity.

:22:45. > :22:50.That is the word on the street, he has asked for world-record pace is,

:22:51. > :22:53.music to the ears of Brendan Foster. This is your 37th and final London

:22:54. > :23:00.Marathon, what a way to go out that would be. Are we going to see that?

:23:01. > :23:03.I commentated on his first-ever International race, a cross country

:23:04. > :23:06.in the north-east of England. At the time, I thought he was going to be

:23:07. > :23:09.great. I didn't think he was going to be discreet. I would love to see

:23:10. > :23:15.him go out with a run like that. I am nervous for him, he had a few

:23:16. > :23:19.niggles in the past week. Kenenisa Bekele, some of the greatest of all

:23:20. > :23:26.time, could he win the London Marathon, in a world record? We will

:23:27. > :23:28.see. We will also see some of your great moments over the last 37 years

:23:29. > :23:35.when we moved to BBC One.