Sifan Hassan and Tamirat Tola in action at the London Marathon (© Organisers / Getty Images)
Olympic champions Sifan Hassan and Tamirat Tola will return to the TCS London Marathon, a World Athletics Platinum Label road race, on Sunday 27 April.
It will be the first time Hassan has raced in the British capital since her triumph at the 2023 London Marathon on what was her debut at the distance. After falling behind the leaders and seemingly out of contention for victory, the Dutch distance runner produced a staggering finish to claw her way back to the front and then sprint to victory.
It proved to be a near-template for her victory in the marathon at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. Having already secured bronze medals in the 5000m and 10,000m on the track, Hassan appeared to be losing contact with the leaders of the marathon, only to once again find a way to recover and then use her famous finish to win the sprint for gold.
“It feels so special to come back to the TCS London Marathon,” said Hassan, who won the 2023 Chicago Marathon in a European record of 2:13:44 and is the only woman in history to win Olympic gold over 5000m, 10,000m and the marathon. “This is where I ran my very first marathon and began my journey in this incredible distance. London is also where I learned to be patient, to trust myself, and to keep pushing even when it feels impossible. It is a place where I grew, not just as an athlete, but as a person.”
Tola is one of a select group of athletes to have won world and Olympic titles at the marathon. The Ethiopian earned the world title in 2022 in a championship record of 2:05:36, then lifted the Olympic crown in Paris two years later in a Games record of 2:06:26.
The 33-year-old has contested the London Marathon three times to date, his best result being his third-place finish in 2023.
“Winning the Paris Olympic Marathon was the greatest moment of my running career but I don’t want it to be my last great moment,” said Tola, who also won the 2023 New York Marathon and 2021 Amsterdam Marathon. “I want to continue competing for the biggest titles in this sport and the TCS London Marathon is very much one of those. I know that London always brings the best marathon racers in the world together so it will not be easy, but it is my ambition to win this historic race for the first time in April.”
