London Marathon Ever Presents
The Ever Presents are a group of people who have run the London Marathon at each event since the first event in 1981.[1][2][3] In 1995 the group was first recognised with 42 members. A person is considered to no longer be an Ever Present if they do not run the race in a given year. After the 2023 race, there were seven remaining members of the group.
| Formation | c. April 20, 1996 |
|---|---|
Membership | Runners of all London Marathons since 1981 |
| Affiliations | London Marathon |
| Website | www |
The group's youngest member is Chris Finill who, from 1981 to 2013, completed every race in less than three hours, earning a Guinness World Record for this consistent high performance.[4]
Beginning with the 2020 London Marathon, which was elite-only on the London track, virtual participation (running a tracked marathon on the same day elsewhere) has been sufficient to maintain Ever Present status.[5]
Members
Original members
The group was first acknowledged in 1995 after the 15th marathon with 42 members who had run each event.[6][7]
| Name | Club | Age in 1981 | Time in 1981 | Final race[nb 1] |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Christopher Adams | Orion Harriers | 38 | 02:49:37 | 2002 |
| Alastair Aitken | Highgate Harriers | 41 | 02:53:01 | 1999 |
| Jeff Aston | Les Croupiers | 33 | 02:49:53 | Ever Present |
| Geoffrey Balfour | Huncote Harriers | 31 | 02:45:00 | 2000 |
| Reginald Brown | SLH | 49 | 03:07:38 | 2000 |
| Reginald Burbidge | Highgate Harriers | 55 | 03:54:17 | 2007 |
| Rainer Burchett | Shaftesbury Barnet Harriers | 41 | 02:58:30 | 2011 |
| Harold Chadwick | Bournemouth /TH&H | 34 | 02:24:10 | 1996 |
| David Clark | Newbury AC | 45 | 02:53:55 | 2010 |
| Charles Cousens | Vale of Aylesbury | 38 | 02:58:13 | 2020 |
| Patrick Dobbs | Thurrock Harriers | 42 | 02:41:37 | 2014 |
| Erik Falck-Therkelsen | Woking AC | 40 | 02:59:59 | 2001 |
| David Fereday | Barnet & District | 42 | 03:13:55 | 2014 |
| Chris Finill | Harrow AC | 22 | 02:32:55 | Ever Present |
| Derek Fisher | Newport Harriers | 45 | 02:56:22 | 2004 |
| Jeffrey Gordon | Thames H&H | 47 | 03:13:42 | 2013 |
| Peter Greenwood | Canterbury Harriers AC | 38 | 02:46:53 | 2002 |
| John Hanscombe | Ranelagh Harriers | 45 | 02:54:29 | 2008 |
| Jan Hildreth | Thames H&H | 48 | 03:25:37 | 2005 |
| Raymond Johnson | Kimberley & Dist. Striders | 48 | 03:11:00 | 2006 |
| Kenneth Jones | Orion Harriers | 47 | 03:18:37 | Ever Present |
| Max Jones | Birchfield Harriers | 53 | 03:51:52 | 2002 |
| John Legge | Orion Harriers | 50 | 03:02:35 | 2000 |
| Roger Low | Highgate Harriers | 37 | 02:47:55 | 2020 |
| Dale Lyons | Massey Ferguson RC | 44 | 03:10:03 | 2018 |
| Terence Macey | New Eltham Joggers | 32 | 03:17:56 | 2020 |
| Lionel Mann | Belgrave Harriers | 40 | 03:06:07 | 2002 |
| Don Martin | Royal Parks Police | 40 | 04:10:00 | 2005 |
| Roger Mawer | Lowestoft | 40 | 02:58:04 | 2009 |
| Mick McGeoch | Les Croupiers | 25 | 02:24:19 | 2002 |
| William O’Connor | Queen's Park Harriers | 35 | 02:35:52 | Ever Present |
| Michael Peace | Ranelagh Harriers | 31 | 03:11:45 | Ever Present |
| Mike Peel | Blackheath & Bromley Harriers AC | 39 | 02:40:30 | 2012 |
| Derrick Pickering | East Hull Harriers | 44 | 02:38:38 | 2010 |
| Bryan Read | Orion Harriers | 40 | 03:24:05 | 1998 |
| Peter Shepheard | Blackheath Harriers | 38 | 02:29:47 | 2005 |
| Malcolm Speake | Bildeston Bounders | 39 | 02:47:58 | Ever Present |
| Michael Starr | St Albans Striders | 37 | 03:47:11 | 2002 |
| Tony Tillbrooke | Victory AC | 41 | 03:42:24 | 2012 |
| David Walker | Chalfont & Chiltern | 35 | 03:06:11 | Ever Present |
| Steve Wehrle | Dulwich Runners AC | 32 | 03:51:26 | 2016 |
| Michael Wilkinson | Duke Street Runners | 42 | 02:52:51 | 2007 |
- — no longer a member
- — still a member
Current members
Seven people have completed every London Marathon up to and including the 2023 event.[7]
| Name | Club | Age | Most recent time (2023) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jeff Aston | Les Croupiers | 75 | 08:08:01 |
| Chris Finill | Harrow AC | 64 | 03:21:00 |
| Kenneth Jones | Orion Harriers | 89 | 08:54:01 |
| William O'Connor | Queen's Park Harriers | 77 | 05:57:59 |
| Michael Peace | Ranelagh Harriers | 73 | 04:20:06 |
| Malcolm Speake | Bildeston Bounders AC | 81 | 06:56:16 |
| David Walker | Chalfont & Chiltern | 77 | 07:38:39 |
References
- "1981: Racing into the history books". BBC. 29 March 1981. Retrieved 20 April 2015.
- Curtis, Joe (23 April 2013). "Former Chingford councillor and 'Ever Present' Jeffrey Gordon runs in 33rd London Marathon". This Is Local London. Retrieved 27 April 2013.
- Goad, Ryan (20 April 2012). "Amazing Pat to continue his ever present record at London Marathon". The Echo. Retrieved 20 April 2015.
- "Chris Finill: an extraordinary ever-present". Virgin Money London Marathon. Retrieved 27 April 2013.
- "Ever Present". Retrieved 19 December 2020.
- Media Guide. London: Virgin London Marathon. 2003. p. 169.
- "Ever Present Performances". Ever Present. Retrieved 25 April 2017.
Footnotes
- "Final race" denotes last complete race; some runners started the following year's race but failed to finish