London Marathon 2026 Preview: Course, Weather, Predictions, Hot Takes & Two-Day Race 2027 Rumors
Marathon Handbook PodcastShow Notes
It's London week. Michael Doyle, Alex Cyr and Katelyn Tocci deliver the Marathon Handbook one-stop preview of the 2026 TCS London Marathon: course, elites, weather, the jacket design, shoes, ballot drama, and the looming question of whether London Marathon Events can pull off a two-day "Double London" in 2027. What's in this episode: A brief history of London from the 1981 inaugural race (6,255 finishers) through the 1.3 million applicants now fighting for roughly 60,000 spots. Why the ballot has made London the single hardest World Marathon Major for internationals to enter, and how the charity-bib and running-club routes actually work. A course walkthrough of one of running's great spectacles — the staggered southeast start, the 9:05 elite women's gun, Cutty Sark at mile six, Tower Bridge at the halfway inflection, Canary Wharf, Big Ben, and the jaw-dropping finish down The Mall past Buckingham Palace into St. James's Park. Weather check: a probable high-40s to low-60s°F day, sunnier than ideal but dry and low humidity. The crew think we're lined up for a Boston-style "no excuses" day and some serious times. The 2026 New Balance London kit, a.k.a. the "Cheetah Girl" jacket — the crew rate it, debate whether London should have a defined color system, and land on an official Marathon Handbook freshness score. The Adidas Pro Evo 3 is expected to formally launch in London, likely on the feet of Sebastian Sawe and Tigst Assefa. The shoe wars angle, why Adidas held it back from Boston, and what a "win on the shoe" does for the brand narrative. The Double London 2027 rumor: reporting out of the UK suggests London Marathon Events is exploring a two-race weekend. The crew debate every format — men/women split, elite/mass split, same weekend vs two seasons — and Michael lands on an elegant Boston-flavored solution: a qualifying race Saturday for performance runners, the iconic lottery mass race Sunday for everyone else. Predictions and hot takes: Will London break the 60,000-finisher barrier for the first time in history? Does Sebastian Sawe go sub-2 on the London course? Does Tigst Assefa finally take down Paula Radcliffe's 23-year-old course record of 2:15:25? Where does Hellen Obiri land on a flat course she has never run before? Which brand wins the day — Adidas, Nike, or a dark horse? Plus the updated Marathon Handbook World Marathon Majors Power Rankings as of April 22, 2026. Coverage plan for the weekend: The crew will be on the ground Thursday through race day. Shakeout run Saturday at 10 AM in Hyde Park (Serpentine loop) — all welcome. Live watch-along Sunday at Knees Up cafe in Hackney, streaming on the Marathon Handbook YouTube channel as a second-screen companion to the broadcast. Instant Reaction podcast drops the moment the race wraps.
More from Marathon Handbook Podcast
Traveling for a race? On this week’s episode of The Marathon Handbook Podcast, Michael Doyle, Alex Cyr and Katelyn Tocci are joined by Jessy Carveth live from Michael’s living room in Toronto. They’re there for Toronto Waterfront Marathon weekend, and the crew breaks down everything you need to know about racing away from home. SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS: We love Wahoo’s KICKR RUN treadmill – go to https://wahoofitness.com and use promo code MHRUN to get a free $319 KICKR Headwind Fan with your treadmill order. Marathon Handbook listeners get 15% off their entire order when shopping CEP Running online through November 15! Shop CEP Running or enter code LRL-NYC-15 at checkout.
Michael, Alex and Katelyn react to the 2026 Chicago Marathon after recording their live watchalong. They cover the biggest surprises and key takeaways from the race. We love Wahoo’s KICKR RUN treadmill – go to https://wahoofitness.com and use promo code MHRUN to get a free $319 KICKR Headwind Fan with your treadmill order. TORONTO MILE ZERO LIVE SHOW, 17th Oct: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/marathon-handbook-live-mile-zero-toronto-2026-tickets-2002512056467 NYC MILE ZERO LIVE SHOW, 31st Oct: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/marathon-handbook-live-mile-zero-nyc-2026-tickets-2002340913574 Join Marathon Handbook's RunClub for access to our members-only podcast, training plans, community rooms, merch and more: https://marathonhandbook.com/runclub Shop Marathon Handbook Merch: https://store.marathonhandbook.com Send us a question: https://marathonhandbook.com/podcast/ Join our newsletter: https://marathonhandbook.com/newsletter/
How do you go from job-hunting after college to a 2:05:54 marathon, run in Toledo, in one year? Vinny Mauri did it, and now he’s one of the most talked-about American runners at the 2026 Chicago Marathon. Alex Cyr caught up with Vinny at the Chicago Marathon athlete availability, two days before his first big-city marathon. Vinny explains the 45-mile day that capped his build: 2 x 50 minutes in the morning and 4 x 20 minutes in the afternoon, both on the treadmill. He also explains how he picks his workouts by asking friends and Instagram followers to “pick a number one to four.”
Chicago Marathon weekend is almost here! Michael Doyle, Alex Cyr and Katelyn Tocci preview the race, then answer your questions. SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS: We love Wahoo’s KICKR RUN treadmill – go to https://wahoofitness.com and use promo code MHRUN to get a free $319 KICKR Headwind Fan with your treadmill order. This episode is presented by Momentous. Use promo code MARATHON for up to 35% off your first order: https://livemomentous.com Marathon Handbook listeners get 15% off their entire order when shopping CEP Running online through November 15! Shop CEP Running or enter code LRL-NYC-15 at checkout.
Nike has announced three new race day shoes, and the headliner is the Nike Apex: a zero drop super shoe with 40mm of stack in both the heel and the forefoot, built to challenge the Adidas Adios Pro Evo 3 at the front of the world's fastest marathons. Alex Cyr and Michael Doyle break down the Apex, the Alphafly 4 and the $145 Swooshfly. We sat in on Nike's briefing with the executives and designers behind these shoes and draw on conversations from this summer with Nike athletes and with Brett Schoolmeester, the VP who has helped lead Nike's super shoe program from the start. We cover the Apex's specs and $350 price, whether Nike's athletes will embrace a zero drop racer, how hard it may be to buy a pair, why the Swooshfly is aimed at beginners and at China's booming marathon scene, and whether Nike now has the best running shoe lineup in the sport.