London Marathon raises record £73.5m for charity

More than 53,700 people took part in the 2024 London Marathon

Final figures released by TCS London Marathon have shown the event raised a new record of £73.5m for charity.

Fundraising had already passed £67m the day after the event on 21 April - which saw more than 53,700 people cross the finish line.

That figure broke the previous world record for an annual one-day fundraising event, which was £66.4m set by the London Marathon in 2019.

The cumulative total raised since the first London Marathon in 1981 is now more than £1.3bn.

Hugh Brasher, chief executive of London Marathon Events, said: "We salute every single participant who has contributed to this world record-breaking total of £73.5m for the thousands of charities which provide essential services to so many."

'Outstanding fundraising'

Enthuse, the official online fundraising partner for the TCS London Marathon, saw a record £30m raised on its platform, a 60% increase on 2023.

Chester Mojay-Sinclare, Enthuse founder and chief executive, said: "Charities play a crucial role in the UK and this outstanding fundraising total is a reflection of people's gratitude towards them."

Samaritans was the charity of the year in 2024.

Sonya Trivedy, executive director of external engagement at Samaritans, said it was "a landmark moment" for the charity.

She added: "Partnering with the world's most iconic marathon provided a unique opportunity for us to reach millions of people with a message of hope - Believe in Tomorrow.

"We are so grateful to all our 2024 London Marathon runners and partners who have so far helped us raise more than £1.1m, four times the amount we would normally raise annually via the London Marathon.

"We estimate that over the next three years, the charity of the year partnership will generate a total of £2.8m."

Runners in the London Marathon raise funds for thousands of different charities

Emma Pound, challenge events programme manager for Macmillan, said the London Marathon made up a "huge part" of its fundraising income to support people living with cancer and the charity raised more than £2.1m from the 2024 event.

More than 840,000 people applied in the ballot for a place in the 2025 TCS London Marathon which will take place on 27 April, a new record on the 578,304 who applied for 2024.