2026 London Marathon: defending champion Tigst Assefa returns to face old rivals Jepchirchir and Hassan. The race will take place on April 26, and defending champion and women's marathon world record holder Tigst Assefa will face strong challenges from two familiar opponents — Olympic champion Peres Jepchirchir and world champion Sifan Hassan. Since 2022 Assefa has raced two editions of the London Marathon and two editions of the Berlin Marathon, plus the 2024 Olympic Games and the 2025 World Championships marathon. Over the past three-and-a-half years she has twice won Berlin — including the then-world record of 2:11:53 in 2023 — and won London, setting the women's marathon world record of 2:15:50. However, it has been Hassan and Jepchirchir who have beaten her. Jepchirchir narrowly out-sprinted Assefa in the finales of the 2024 London Marathon and the 2025 World Championships marathon in Tokyo. Meanwhile, Hassan outsprinted Assefa in the closing stages of the marathon at the 2024 Paris Olympic Games. This will be the first time the three athletes have lined up together since the Olympic marathon in Paris. Hassan (2023, her marathon debut) and Jepchirchir (2024) are both former London Marathon champions. Hassan won the dramatic 2024 Olympic marathon (having already taken two athletics medals at the same Games) and also claimed victories at the 2023 Chicago Marathon and the 2025 Sydney Marathon. Jepchirchir is now the world champion in both the marathon and the half marathon; she also holds titles at the Tokyo, Boston and New York Marathons, and was the marathon champion at the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games. Beyond the big three, two Kenyan athletes will arrive in London in excellent form: Joyciline Jepkosgei and Hellen Obiri. Jepkosgei is the 2021 London Marathon champion and beat Jepchirchir at the 2025 Valencia Marathon. Obiri makes her London debut; since switching to the marathon she has won two New York Marathons (2023, 2025) and two Boston Marathons (2023, 2024). When she won New York last November she lowered the course record by nearly three minutes to 2:19:51. Obiri finished third in the Paris Olympic marathon, behind Hassan and Assefa. Uruguay's Julia Paternain will also compete in London, meaning all the medalists from last year's World Championships will be together. At last year's Worlds, Paternain crossed the line unaware she had won bronze, earning Uruguay its first ever World Championships medal. British home contenders to watch These international stars will line up alongside previously announced British entries, including Eilish McColgan, Jess Warner-Judd and Abbie Donnelly.