This year’s London Marathon could be the hottest ever but you never know with weather forecasts

London Marathon organisers say they will send advice to runners this week, with forecasts suggesting Sunday's race could be the hottest on record. Expected temperatures of up to 24C (75F) could surpass the 22.2C recorded in both 1996 and 2007. Organisers told the BBC they have made contingency plans, but that it is too soon for an accurate prediction. "We monitor the weather forecast for race day very closely," said Hugh Brasher, the marathon's event director. "We have a number of contingency plans in place in case of hot weather and we will be sending advice to runners and spectators later in the week that will be proportionate to race day." In 2007, organisers installed four run-through showers along the route and added an extra 2,600 bottles of water to the normal stock of 25,000 bottles at each station to help runners deal with the high temperatures. "This year's London Marathon will end up being one of the warmest on record, potentially even the warmest," said BBC weather presenter Simon King. "Temperatures on Sunday are expected to reach 22-24°C with some strong April sunshine. "The heat will no doubt cause issues for the runners, but I can offer the smallest of relief in that there is a small chance of a thunderstorm through the morning which will temporarily drop the temperature." Marathon schedule: Sunday April 22 Start times (BST): Elite Women (09:15), Elite Men & Mass start (10:00)

posted Wednesday April 18th