Press Release - London Marathon - 4/19/18

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

                     Important weather update for Race Day
					 
19/04/2018

The weather forecast for Race Day on Sunday is currently predicted to be 
the hottest on record at around 23 degrees Celsius. The previous highest 
temperature on Race Day was 22.2 degrees Celsius in 1996 and 2007. The 
forecast may change and we will be in touch with runners again on Saturday 
with an update.

Below is important advice from Professor Sanjay Sharma, Medical Director of 
the London Marathon. Please read it carefully.

Adapt your goal according to the conditions. In the conditions 
forecast for Sunday, you should slow your planned pace. If you were 
planning to run in fancy dress, please think carefully whether 
that is still appropriate in the conditions.

Listen to your body. If you feel thirsty, drink water. If you feel 
overly tired, slow down. If you feel unwell in any way, visit one of 
the 39 first aid stations on the course. Check out the locations of 
the first aid stations by downloading the Virgin Money London Marathon 
App.

Wear the appropriate clothing. This should ideally be lightweight 
moisture management clothing designed for use in warmer conditions 
(but remember that new clothing can chafe if it hasn’t been worn and 
washed).

Drink according to your thirst. There is water or sports drink 
available every mile from Mile 3 to Mile 25 on the course. Be careful 
not to overdrink – drinking too much water can be dangerous and lead 
to hyponatremia (water intoxication) – read more here

One bottle only at each water station. Please do not take more than 
one water bottle or compostable cup at any water station. There is 
plenty of water for everyone if you only take one.

Drink, Douse, Drain, Drop. When you take water, Drink if you feel 
thirsty. Douse your head and the back of your neck with the 
remaining water. If you don’t need all the water, check if your 
fellow runners would like it to douse themselves. Drain your 
bottle by squeezing out any unused water. Drop the bottle carefully 
on the ground for our recycling teams to collect.

Use the showers. There are six shower stations on the course 
which are based at Miles 9, 13, 17, 20, 22 and 23 – remember to 
run through these if you need to cool down. Remember that as your 
running clothing becomes wetter, you may experience chafing. 
Consider taping sensitive areas such as nipples and using 
petroleum jelly to help prevent chafing.

Sunscreen. You may be out in the sun for several hours so 
remember to apply a good quality sunscreen to all exposed areas
before you leave home.
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