MARATHON MADNESS
Which celebrities are running the TCS London Marathon 2024?
Plus why one racer must beat his personal best
PLENTY of well-known faces will be taking to the starting line to take on the 2024 London Marathon.
The annual event will be held in the capital on Sunday April 21, 2024. Here's which celebs are set to run in this year's event.
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Which celebrities are running the London Marathon?
Romesh Ranganathan
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Romesh Ranganathan is making his London Marathon debut this year.
He has been a patron of Campaign Against Living Miserably (CALM) since October 2023 and will be running in support of the mental health helpline charity.
Romesh talked about his preparation to saying that "running always kicks your a***".
He added: "It’s easy to take up; it’s really hard to master.
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"That’s what stand-up is like: it’s easy to start, but very difficult to get really good at.
"And I think that’s what running is like: every time you think you’ve cracked it, the god of running goes, 'I’m going to give you something else to kick your a***'.”
Emma Barton and Jamie Borthwick
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Emma Barton and Jamie Borthwick have already run the London Marathon but are doing it for a second time for an EastEnders storyline.
Their characters Honey and Jay are running in memory of Jay’s wife Lola who died of a brain tumour in a storyline from 2023.
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A source said: “The marathon is such a huge part of the London calendar and so it was time it featured in EastEnders.
“And as bosses plotted Jay would take part, they hit on the ingenious idea of asking Jamie to do it for real.
Sir Jim Ratcliffe, 71, needs a PB in London Marathon if he's to make Man Utd's FA Cup semi-final after kick-off switch
“Jamie was a bit surprised – it was quite an undertaking. And he’s committed to rigorous training for months."
They added: "He’s a great sport and loves his job, so didn’t need asking twice.”
Chloe Meadows
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After revealing her diagnosis with ulcerative colitis in December 2023, The Only Way Is Essex’s Chloe Meadows will be taking on the marathon in support of Crohn’s and Colitis UK.
She was diagnosed with colitis six years ago and is now raising awareness of the condition.
Phil Dunster
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Ted Lasso actor Phil Dunster will be taking on his first London Marathon for Young Lives vs Cancer.
His cousin’s son Rory was diagnosed with a brain tumour aged just four months old and the charity helped his family.
Natalie Pinkham
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Sky Sports F1 presenter and Flackstock co-founder Natalie Pinkham is running the marathon for Samaritans in memory of her friend Caroline Flack.
She said: "Samaritans is one of the charities we support at Flackstock and I love everything that it stands for."
Joshua Patterson
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This isn't Joshua Patterson's first marathon but it is his first one in London.
The Made In Chelsea star broke the record of running one in every 76 UK cities in 76 days and completed the LA Marathon.
Izzy Christiansen
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Izzy Christiansen wants to raise awareness of bowel cancer when she runs the London Marathon in memory of her aunt.
The England midfielder told BBC Sport: "I lost my auntie to bowel cancer 18 months ago.
"I was really, really close to her and it was a really tough time.
"I was so determined when I finished playing football to do some fundraising."
Sir Jim Ratcliffe
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Britain's richest man Sir Jim Ratcliffe is set to take part in the 2024 London Marathon.
Appearing on Geraint Thomas' podcast he talked about his marathon experience.
Sir Jim said: "I did London last year. I did four and a half. I'm doing London again this year."
How to watch the 2024 London Marathon
Here's how you can watch the London Marathon:
- You can watch on TV on BBC One
- Two live streams - from Tower Bridge and the Finish Line on BBC iPlayer and BBC Sport app
- In person - there are five accessible viewing areas on the course
- Highlights show on BBC Two at 6pm
The Manchester United shareholder added: "I trained for London last year and I had a hamstring issue.
"I was out for five weeks and I didn't have much time to retrain.
"I went to Africa, it was quite warm and I had a go. It was okay.
"Exactly the same thing has happened this year.
"I've had five weeks out with a hamstring so I only started training a week ago for London. It's not very long. I need to get going."
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Despite the injury, Sir Jim will be hoping to smash his personal best of 4 hours 30 minutes in order.
This is because Manchester United's are facing Coventry in the FA Cup semi-final at Wembley, with the kick off at 3.30pm.
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