London Marathon - 3:07:01

I'd been scrutinising the weather forecast for several days prior to the race and I was disappointed that the high pressure sitting over the UK was refusing to budge. I thought that this was part of the deal when I committed to running London: a slight drizzle, temperature hovering around 10°C, and a light breeze. Global warming is definitely having a negative impact on my race times.

The travel to London and the hotel went smoothly. Eurostar is most impressive now that the journey time in the UK has been cut in half. It only takes 2h15 from one capital to the next and you arrive in the centre of London. I woke up on Sunday morning just before 6:00am and had a good breakfast. The race was due to start at 9:45am so I didn't want to be hungry in 3 hours time. The start time was a handicap too. 9:45am in London is 10:45am in Paris and it would be getting warm. Temperatures were forecast to hit 23°C today and I was far from the 10°C I had initially imagined.

The tour operator had organised a bus transfer from the hotel on the Strand (just a few hundred metres from the finish line) to the start in Greenwich. Getting off the bus in Blackheath Park was already impressive. Hot air balloons were spread over the park, including one in the shape of a motorbike.


The start area was extremely well organised with lines of portaloos everywhere (apparently there are 1 250 portable toilets for the London Marathon organisation !). I queued up initially for the loo behind a guy who I started talking to, asking him if it was his first London marathon. He replied no, that he'd already run it 4 or 5 times but that he runs a marathon almost every week and around 40 per year. It was reassuring to know that my own participation in these events is far more reasonable.


All of the St Germain runners sat together on the grass in the blue start enclosure before the start. Despite all of my talk about enjoying the atmosphere and just finishing the race, I could feel the adrenaline building up inside me and the questions about whether I could finish the marathon at 4:15 pace. I agreed to run with Bruno P and Bruno B and told them that I'd set the Garmin to 4:15 pace and that I'd be trying to keep to this as close as possible. We entered our race pen and again the organisation was just amazing. There was no pushing or shoving, the barriers were removed and we were gently shepherded to the start line about 10 metres behind the elite male runners.

A few chats with both Brunos and we were off. It was dense at the start and not so easy to find my pace. After the first mile, this had sorted itself out and we were on target running around 4:10 pace. The first 3 kilometres of the race are very slightly uphill but all of this changes in the 4th and 5th kilometres as the road heads down to the Thames and there is a long section of downhill, which I ran with Bruno B in 3:53 pace. Bruno P, despite all of his injuries and lack of full training, had set off even faster and we could no longer see him. I held Bruno B back at this point and said that we were already running too fast and that we needed to slow or we would pay later. Despite my warning, we went through the 5km marker in Woolwich in 20:28, almost a minute faster than the target pace.

The next 5 kilometres were virtually flat and we were heading back to Greenwich. The atmosphere was simply amazing. I've never run in a race where there are so many crowds and the buzz was just tremendous. Groups were playing music beside the road and as we ran through different boroughs the music changed. Going through Lewisham and Deptford there was reggae and jazz; in Greenwich it was rock. The sun was fully out now and the initial clouds and overcast weather that we experienced before the start had been burnt away with the strength of the sun. We went through 10 km in 41:17 and I began to feel the pace slightly.

The ease with which I'd been running until now became more of an effort. It wasn't significant, but I tried to find the shade, I ran through the showers provided, I picked up water regularly and soaked my cap and rubbed my face down. Bruno B was still beside me and when I asked him if he felt alright, he still replied positively. The pace slowed to 4:15 per kilometre now and the 2 minute advantage we had over the Garmin virtual partner stayed steady at this point. The crowds were cheering, drinking beers and shouting out the names of all runners who'd printed their names on their shirts. It was around this point that we were overtaken by a runner dressed as angel complete with white tutu and wings fixed to his back. I was impressed both by his pace and the outfit.

We were just approaching Tower Bridge when I spotted Bruno P on the left-hand side of the road obviously suffering from the early pace. I have to admit that I wasn't surprised as in training, I'd been significantly faster than him around the track and I knew that he'd been suffering from ankle problems too. Bruno B was still with me and we crossed Tower Bridge and then the half-marathon line together. The crowds were thicker than ever and the cheers and encouragement made the hairs on my arms tingle with excitement.

It was just after crossing the half-marathon line that I began to think that I wouldn't be able to manage it. I was suffering from the heat and my legs were feeling very heavy. I wondered if I'd fully recovered from the Ecotrail and that the 3 week gap between races of this length was not enough. I got to 25km and I'd had enough. I wondered whether to drop out and get a tube to the finish. No, I couldn't do that. I'd told everyone that I was not going to beat my record and just wanted to enjoy the atmosphere so why not ease off the pace and do just that. Even this wasn't easy. The crowds wouldn't let you walk because as soon as anyone stopped they would shout and cheer and encourage you to continue. I slowed to around 5:00 pace and Bruno B caught back up with me and I told him to continue as I was beat. He looked tired too and told me that he was also suffering. About 2 kilometres further on, Bruno P came past and I let him go too.

I shuffled on until the 30 km mark which I passed in 2:08. Theoretically, this was still in line with a 3 hour marathon but I just looked at the watch knowing that it wouldn't be possible today. I ran steadily from then on, trying not to stop and when I managed this I was running at about 4:35 pace. I passed Bruno B who I wouldn't see again, and then Bruno P. From now until the end Bruno P and I would exchange the lead of the St Germain contingent another 2 times.

At around the 35 kilometre mark, I spotted a Sydney Striders top and caught up to the guy to ask him how he was. He told me he was called Stephen Jackson and that he was suffering from a hamstring injury from a week earlier. He knew my brother Tom and said that he was a great runner. This remark proved that the guy was delirious and suffering too from the heat and injury. ;) I would have run with him but he was tiring badly and he waved me on. The last meeting was looking out for Dad along the route and just before the 40 kilometre marker, there was a voice from the crowds for me and I turned to spot Dad who'd only seen me at the last moment.

I picked up the pace to finish at 4:35 pace in 3:07:01. I was disappointed with myself and the time but have put this down to the heat, the sun, the Ecotrail and the lack of training following my achilles injury. I'll definitely do better in Florence in the Autumn. Bruno P finished 50 seconds behind me, having picked up the pace himself towards the end of the race.

The London marathon is amazing though with the crowds and the whole atmosphere. I really enjoyed this aspect of the race. I'll have to return to do this again in better conditions: 10°c and a light drizzle would be lovely, thank you.