Dear Hugh Brasher, Event Director of the Virgin London Marathon

I am disappointed with your decision to exclude those athletes who have gained their qualification for the Championship or GFA start pre 1st Jan 2019 from the 2021 race. 

I believe excluding championship and GFA athletes from the 2021 race that gained their qualification pre 1st January 2019 and offering them a place in the general start of the 2023 race is like a slap in the face.  Thus taking away their chance of a championship/GFA start from athletes that have worked extremely hard to obtain their qualification, often over years of hard training.  Making it so that these athletes have pay and take part in the virtual race on 4th October to re-qualify is just a further kick in the teeth. 

I think it is irresponsible and verging on dangerous to ask athletes to put themselves under extreme conditions to run a solo virtual race.  No support, no water, no gels etc to regain their qualification which they achieved in race conditions with all of the above support.  The amount of athletes who have needed medical assistance at previous marathons who are fit, healthy and more than capable of obtaining the time they have set themselves is evident. This is not just the amateurs either, this happens to the elites.  Hawkins is just one example.

An easy simple way of discovering if athletes are still in qualifying form for the 2021 race that gained their qualification pre 1st January 2019 would be to simply ask them to submit any race results that shows their qualifying time through 2019 or 2020.  If they have no evidence then I understand they may not have kept to qualifying form for the 2021 race and you would need to look at other measures to ensure they are in Championship or GFA form for the the 2021 race.

This petition is to urge you to rethink your decision and allow athletes who have rightly gained their Championship/GFA qualification pre 1st January 2019, to keep it and not penalise them by making them do a virtual race.

Yours sincerely

Hannah Broom

(Championship place holder)