London Marathon run for the first time in 1981

BBC Sport looks back at the first running of the London Marathon in 1981.

Chris Brasher and John Disley's idea came to fruition with over 7,000 people taking to the capital's streets, led home by the American Dick Beardsley and Norwegian Inge Simonsen, who staged a dead heat.

Joyce Smith won the women's race, coming home just inside two hours and thirty minutes to set a new British record.

Follow the 2014 London Marathon across BBC Sport.

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