2011 London Marathon

31st London Marathon
Venue	London, England, United Kingdom
Dates	17 April 2011
Champions
Men	Emmanuel Mutai (2:04:44) (Elite) David Weir (1:30:05) (Wheelchair)
Women	Mary Keitany (2:19:19) (Elite) Amanda McGrory (1:46:31) (Wheelchair)

Runners in the mass race passing through Tooley Street

The 2011 London Marathon took place on Sunday, 17 April 2011. The men's elite race saw Emmanuel Mutai win in a course record time to become the fourth fastest ever over the distance. Runner-up Martin Lel sprinted to the line to beat Patrick Makau, completing a Kenyan sweep of the podium. Mary Keitany became the fourth fastest woman ever with her winning time, while defending champion Liliya Shobukhova came second with a Russian record time.^[1][2]

In the elite wheelchair racing marathon, Briton David Weir beat the defending champion Josh Cassidy to claim his fifth title at the event – the most in the history of the competition.^[3] London's 2009 women's wheelchair winner Amanda McGrory won her second title in a course record time of 1:46:31 hours.^[4]

Around 35,000 people took part in the mass race and 35 Guinness World Records were set at the competition.^[5] The majority of the records were for completing the fastest race in a certain costume, but others included the fastest couple and fastest parent-child pairings. German Uli Killian solved 100 Rubik's Cube puzzles whilst completing the race.^[6] Steve Chalke, a Christian social activist, improved the record for the most funds raised for charity through a marathon run, raising £2.3 million for his Oasis Trust – beating his own record set at the previous year's race.^[7] The largest age group present at the race were men in their 30s, followed by men in their 40s. The joint-youngest runners were Michael Bennett and Helen Nutter, both taking part on their eighteenth birthdays (the minimum allowable age), while the oldest participant was 87-year-old Paul Freedman.^[8]

Going against the traditionally strict invitational criteria for the elite races, an additional nine Japanese women were a late addition to the field. The 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami meant that the Nagoya International Women's Marathon (a qualifier for the 2011 World Championships) was cancelled and a sympathetic agreement between the London race organisers and the Japan Association of Athletics Federations resulted in London taking the role of the cancelled Nagoya race.^[9][10]

The 2011 London Marathon marked the last time that Dave Bedford acted as the sole race director, with Hugh Brasher (son of former runner Chris Brasher) joining Bedford in a joint role in 2012 before taking full responsibility of the role.^[11]

Results

Elite races

Emmanuel Mutai en route to his course record win

Martin Lel sprinted to take second place.

Elite Men

Position	Athlete	Nationality	Time
	Emmanuel Mutai	Kenya	2:04:40 CR
	Martin Lel	Kenya	2:05:45
	Patrick Makau	Kenya	2:05:45
4	Marílson Gomes dos Santos	Brazil	2:06:34
5	Tsegaye Kebede	Ethiopia	2:07:48
6	Jaouad Gharib	Morocco	2:08:26
7	Abderrahime Bouramdane	Morocco	2:08:42
8	Dmitriy Safronov	Russia	2:09:35
9	Serod Bat-Ochir	Mongolia	2:11:35 NR
10	Michael Shelley	Australia	2:11:38

Mary Keitany won the women's race and became the fourth fastest woman ever.

Liliya Shobukhova was second in a Russian record time.

Elite women

Position	Athlete	Nationality	Time
	Mary Keitany	Kenya	2:19:19
	Liliya Shobukhova	Russia	2:20:15 NR
	Edna Kiplagat	Kenya	2:20:46
4	Bezunesh Bekele	Ethiopia	2:23:42
5	Atsede Baysa	Ethiopia	2:23:50
6	Yukiko Akaba	Japan	2:24:09
7	Irina Mikitenko	Germany	2:24:24
8	Jéssica Augusto	Portugal	2:24:33
9	Aberu Kebede	Ethiopia	2:24:34
10	Mariya Konovalova	Russia	2:25:18

Wheelchair races

David Weir and Heinz Frei duelling in the men's wheelchair race

Action from the women's wheelchair race

Men's event

Position	Athlete	Nationality	Time
	David Weir	United Kingdom	1:30:05
	Heinz Frei	Switzerland	1:30:07
	Tomasz Hamerlak	Poland	1:30:54
4	Roger Puigbo	Spain	1:30:55
5	Josh Cassidy	Canada	1:30:56

Women's event

Position	Athlete	Nationality	Time
	Amanda McGrory	United States	1:46:31 CR
	Shelly Woods	United Kingdom	1:46:31
	Sandra Graf	Switzerland	1:46:33
4	Tatyana McFadden	United States	1:46:34
5	Diane Roy	Canada	1:57:03

See also

• 2010 London Marathon

References

1. Brown, Matthew (2011-04-17). Mutai and Keitany dominate and dazzle in London. IAAF. Retrieved on 2011-04-25.
2. Creighton, Jessica (2011-04-17). Mutai and Keitany secure Kenyan London Marathon double. BBC Sport. Retrieved on 2011-04-25.
3. David Weir claims record fifth London Marathon wheelchair title. The Guardian (2011-04-17). Retrieved on 2011-04-25.
4. Marl, Sarah (2011-04-17). McGrory triumphs in new course record. Disability Sport. Retrieved on 2011-04-25.
5. London marathon: Thousands join record-breaking elite. BBC Sport (2011-04-17). Retrieved on 2011-04-25.
6. London Marathon: The oddest world records set. News Lite (2011-04-19). Retrieved on 2011-04-25.
7. Tong, Andrew (2011-04-24). Outside Edge: Straight home on home straight. The Independent. Retrieved on 2011-04-25.
8. McVeigh, Karen (2011-04-17). London Marathon 2011: Tutu much for some, while elsewhere rhinos run riot. The Guardian. Retrieved on 2011-04-25.
9. Okey, Nicola (2011-03-23). Japanese women added to London Marathon field. IAAF. Retrieved on 2011-04-25.
10. London Marathon offers respite for Japanese runners. BBC Sport (2011-04-14). Retrieved on 2011-04-25.
11. Laurance, Ben (2011-04-15). London Marathon director was paid almost £250,000 last year. The Guardian. Retrieved on 2011-04-25.

Results

• Virgin London Marathon 2011 Results. London Marathon. Retrieved on 2011-04-25.

External links

• Official race reports