London Marathon boss hopes 'force for good' message will deter protest threat

London Marathon bosses believe they have the appropriate security measures to stop any disruptions to Sunday’s event.

Race director Hugh Brasher said he hoped the marathon’s nature as a “force for good” would deter protestors – runners are expected to raise £66.4million for charitable causes at this weekend’s race.

Brasher also revealed that among the 50,000 anticipated finishers there are those running both for Palestinians and Israelis caught up in the conflict in the Middle East.

“We always are taking mitigations in case people try to disrupt the London Marathon,” he said. “I can’t really talk about the mitigations but there are numerous ones that we have.

“But we are a force for good in society. Charity runners will raise more than £66.4m on Sunday.

“There are people running for Palestinians that have been affected. There are people running for Israelis that have been affected. There are so many people running for so many different causes.

“Coexistence and togetherness is what the London Marathon is all about. And we hope that message will resonate with anyone who thinks it is a good thing to disrupt the race, because it isn’t.”