LONDON MARATHON EVENTS TO PROVIDE ENDURANCE FUNDING

London Marathon Events Ltd, organisers of the Virgin Money London Marathon and six other iconic mass participation events, will provide a total of £350,000 in funding to support British endurance athletes in 2019.

£180,000 will be provided to British Athletics towards funding the World Class Programme (WCP) and high altitude training camps for British endurance athletes. A further £70,000 will be allocated to 32 nominated individual athletes not currently supported by the WCPP. £100,000 will support the work of the Endurance Performance and Coaching Centre at St Mary’s University in Twickenham.

Hugh Brasher, Event Director of London Marathon Events, said: “One of Chris Brasher and John Disley’s founding principles when they created the London Marathon back in 1981 was to improve the standard of British endurance running – and this commitment remains as strong today.

“We want to see British endurance athletes challenging the very best runners in the world in the very best races in the world – including the Virgin Money London Marathon – and the support we gave Mo Farah through his university days and beyond has shown how our funding programmes can help athletes get closer to this goal. We are proud to do our part to support British endurance athletes and look forward to a future British winner of the world’s most popular marathon.”

Barry Fudge, Head of Endurance at British Athletics, said: “British endurance athletes have proven they’re among the best in the world and it is fantastic to have the support of London Marathon Events Ltd as we strive towards helping these athletes be the best prepared they can be for the biggest competitions. We are delighted to be working in partnership with London Marathon Events Ltd and we look forward to next year’s Virgin Money London Marathon and seeing what British athletes can achieve as we build towards the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.”

It is the first time London Marathon Events has worked with British Athletics to select the nominated individual athletes and the funding is designed to provide a bridge for endurance runners to the WCP and to improve the standard of British endurance running across all distances.

The athletes were short listed by a panel of British Athletics and London Marathon Events endurance experts, with the final decision made by British Athletics, and range from middle-distance runners to marathon specialists. No athlete currently funded through the British Athletics WCP is eligible to receive London Marathon Events individual funding.

Among the individuals to receive funding from the new programme are marathon runners Jonny Mellor (coach: Steve Vernon; club: Liverpool Harriers), Chris Thompson (Aldershot Farnham & District), Charlotte Purdue (Nic Bideau; AFD), Lily Partridge (Alan Storey; AFD), 2016 Olympians Andy Vernon (AFD) and Chris O’Hare (Terrence Mahon; Edinburgh) together with track talent such as Jess Judd (Mick Judd; Blackburn), Alex Bell (Andrew Henderson; Pudsey & Bramley) and rising star Neil Gourley (Ben Thomas; Giffnock North).

The full list of athletes on the 2019 London Marathon Events/British Athletics funding programme is:

Mohamud Aadan (Paul Oppe; Thames Valley Harriers): Marathon
Charlotte Arter (Chris Jones; Cardiff): 10000m
Tracy Barlow (Nick Anderson; Thames Valley Harriers): Marathon
Alex Bell (Andrew Henderson; Pudsey & Bramley): 800m
Philippa Bowden (Mick Woods; Aldershot Farnham & District): 10000m
Hayley Carruthers (Birchfield Harriers): Marathon
Kieran Clements (Shaftesbury Barnet Harriers): 10000m
Natasha Cockram (Tony Houchin; Micky Morris Racing Team): Marathon
Jamaine Coleman (Helen Clitheroe; Preston): 3000m steeplechase
Ben Connor (Steve Vernon; Derby): 10000m
Ellis Cross (Mick Woods; Aldershot Farnham & District): 10000m
Jonny Davies (Reading): 5000m
Tom Farrell (Mark Rowland; Border Harriers): 5000m
Emelia Gorecka (Chris Thompson; Aldershot Farnham & District): 5000m
Neil Gourley (Ben Thomas; Giffnock North): 1500m
Jess Judd (Mick Judd; Blackburn Harriers): 1500m
Jonny Mellor (Steve Vernon; Liverpool Harriers): Marathon
Ross Millington (Steve Vernon; Stockport): 10000m
Tom Mortimer (Christopher Brown; Stroud): 5000m
Amy-Eloise Neale (Wakefield): 5000m
Chris O’Hare (Terrence Mahon; Edinburgh AC): 1500m
Lily Partridge (Alan Storey; Aldershot Farnham & District AC): Marathon
Aimee Pratt (Vincente Modahl; Sale Harriers): 3000m steeplechase
Charlotte Purdue (Nic Bideau; Aldershot Farnham & District AC): Marathon
Marc Scott (Jerry Schumacher; Richmond & Zetland): 10000m
Zak Seddon (Jeff Seddon; Bracknell AC): 3000m steeplechase
Charlotte Taylor (Nene Valley): 10000m
Chris Thompson (Aldershot Farnham & District AC): Marathon
Steph Twell (Geoff Wightman; Aldershot Farnham & District AC): Marathon
Andy Vernon (Aldershot Farnham & District AC): Marathon
Katrina Wootton (David Dix; Coventry): 10000m
Alice Wright (Joe Franklin/Ben Rosario; Worcester): 10000m