MANCHESTER: Defending champion Tigst Assefa of Ethiopia will renew her rivalry with Olympic gold medallist Sifan Hassan and world champion Peres Jepchirchir when the trio line up for the 2026 TCS London Marathon on April 26.
Assefa, who shattered the women’s world record at the 2022 Berlin Marathon with a time of 2:11:53, returns to London after winning her first title in the British capital last year in a women’s-only world record of 2:15:50.
Her only recent defeats have come against the same two rivals she will face again in April. Kenya’s Jepchirchir edged Assefa in sprint finishes at both the 2024 London Marathon and the 2025 world championships in Tokyo, while Dutch runner Hassan outkicked her to gold at the 2024 Paris Olympics.
“For the first time since Paris, all three of these extraordinary athletes will be on the same start line,” said Hugh Brasher, chief executive of London Marathon Events. “With the calibre of athletes coming to London, it would be no surprise if the women-only world record is broken again.”
Assefa said she is motivated by the prospect of reversing recent results.“Winning last year’s London Marathon was one of the proudest moments of my career,” she said. “To do it again, I know I’ll have to beat great champions like Peres and Sifan. We’ve had some great battles, and I hope this year I can come out on top.”
Hassan, the 2023 London champion, arrives with one of the strongest resumes in the sport, having also claimed marathon victories in Chicago in 2023 and Sydney in 2025.
Jepchirchir, meanwhile, is a world champion in both the marathon and half marathon and has won major titles in Boston and New York, as well as Olympic gold in Tokyo.
The elite women’s field will also include Kenya’s Joyciline Jepkosgei and Hellen Obiri. Jepkosgei won the Valencia Marathon last year in 2:14:00, the fourth-fastest women’s time in history, while two-time New York City Marathon champion Obiri is set to make her London debut.
