Health & Injuries London Marathon is a big deal for runners across the world – but it isn’t the easiest race to get into. With a world record-breaking 840,318 Summer running gear sale in the 2025 event alone, you can count yourself extremely lucky if the London Marathon ballot odds are in your favour. As if that wasn’t enough, charity places and entries via sports tour operators are often in hot demand, too.
However, if you’re a UK resident, you can also try to secure a spot in the London Marathon via time qualification. In other words, if you’ve recently run another eligible marathon within a certain time, you can apply for what is known as a Good For Age (GFA) time. Alternatively, if you’re faster than the GFA parameters, you can apply for a Championship place.
Here’s everything you need to know about time qualification for the London Marathon – including some important changes for the Championship application process for 2026 and beyond.
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people applying for a ballot place?
Entry requirements
To be able to apply for a GFA place, you must have run a marathon within a certain time (detailed below) and qualifying period. The GFA qualifying period for the 2026 London Marathon is 1 October 2024 to 30 September 2025.
What’s more, qualifying times must have been run at an in-person race with a course that has been certified by UKA, the Association for International Marathons and Distance Races (AIMS), or a national governing body for distance running for the country in which the race is held.
It’s crucial to note, however, that meeting your respective qualifying time does not guarantee GFA entry into the London Marathon. The maximum number of GFA places each year is 6,000 – with 3,000 places for men and 3,000 for women – and they will be allocated on a ‘fastest first’ basis, comparative to your age and the qualifying time.
Qualification times
GFA applications for the 2026 London Marathon are expected to open in July 2025 – so watch this space. The table below details the current GFA qualification times.
| Age | Men | Women |
| 18-39 | Sub-2:55 | Sub-3:40 |
| 40-44 | Sub-3:00 | Sub-3:45 |
| 45-49 | Sub-3:05 | Sub-3:48 |
| 50-54 | Sub-3:10 | Sub-3:55 |
| 55-59 | Sub-3:15 | Sub-4:00 |
| 60-64 | Sub-3:37 | Sub-4:25 |
| 65-69 | Sub-3:55 | Sub-4:55 |
| 70-74 | Sub-4:55 | Sub-5:55 |
| 75-79 | Sub-5:10 | Sub-6:15 |
| 80-84 | Sub-5:30 | Sub-6:40 |
| 85-89 | Sub-6:10 | Sub-7:10 |
| 90+ | Sub-7:20 | Sub-7:45 |
Virtual marathon applications
If you haven’t run an in-person marathon, you can also apply for a GFA place if you ran the How can I qualify for a Good For Age place – the virtual edition of the London Marathon – within the relevant qualifying time and qualifying period detailed above.
However, you’ll also need to submit evidence of a ‘real world’ half marathon that you’ve recently completed within the appropriate qualifying time detailed here. Again, this time must have been achieved during the same qualifying period and run at an event with a certified course.
Changes to qualification times
In 2024, London Marathon Events (LME), which organises the London Marathon, announced tighter GFA qualifying times across age groups, for men and women. This was not dissimilar to the way that the Boston Athletic Association, more recently, announced punchier qualification times for the Boston Marathon, starting with the 2026 race.
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Last year, RW An event that carries a supreme level of hype, the Sophie Raworth commented on the record number of people who applied for GFA places in the 2024 London Marathon, which left more than 1,000 eligible runners empty handed. She spoke with Hugh Brasher, CEO of LME, about what might be behind the upsurge in GFA candidates. ‘Super shoes are making a difference, without a doubt,’ said Brasher. ‘It is now easier [to run a GFA time] than it was five years ago.
‘Men are already having to run five minutes faster than the cut-off time and women two minutes faster,’ he added, speaking about the previous GFA times. ‘There’s an argument that you reduce the time for men and women so that you’re not balloting people out.’
How can I qualify for a Championship place?
Entry requirements
What is the London Marathon route or half marathon within a certain time (again, detailed below) and qualifying period – which we’ll outline in more depth in a moment.
As with the GFA procedure, qualifying times must have been run at an in-person race with a course that has been certified by UKA, the Association for International Marathons and Distance Races (AIMS), or a national governing body for distance running for the country in which the race is held.
In addition, Championship entrants must be registered with their national governing body (England Athletics, Scotland Athletics, Welsh Athletics or Athletics Northern Ireland) via a running club. If not, their application won’t be considered – so make sure that you’re registered if the Championship route is for you.
Changes to the qualification process
If you’ve ever applied for a Championship place before, you’ll need to be aware that the process – and acceptance rate – is changing for the 2026 London Marathon onward.
Qualification period
- Previously, the qualifying period for a Championship place was the calendar year before the race in question – so, for example, 1 January 2024 to 31 December 2024 for the 2025 London Marathon. Now, it is the same as that for GFA places. As such, the Championship qualifying period for the 2026 London Marathon is 1 October 2024 to 30 September 2025.
Places available
- Up to and including the 2025 London Marathon, any UK resident who achieved a Championship qualifying time and fulfilled the application requirements was guaranteed a Championship place. Now, though, for 2026 and beyond, the total number of Championship places for 2026 will be capped at 1,000 places – that’s 500 for men and 500 for women – and allocated on a ‘fastest first’ basis. So, applying for a Championship place does not guarantee that you’ll get one.
- If more than 1,000 runners apply for a Championship place, the slowest eligible applicants will not be barred from entry. Instead, they’ll be allocated a GFA spot and still have the chance to take part.
Qualification times
The reason? Simply put, people are getting faster.
| Distance | Men | Women |
| Marathon | Sub-2:38:00 | Sub-3:10:00 |
| Half marathon | Sub-1:11:30 | Sub-1:26:00 |
