THE LONDON MARATHON

  The London Marathon begins with the author standing on the start line at Blackheath for the very first London Marathon in March 1981. And it ends 26 miles and 25 years later, as the author emerges, still running, past BucRingham Palace and on through the miles and memories to the finish.

  The marathon is at once the greatest trial and the greatest motivation for  millions of runners. This is the story not just of the world's greatest runners, but also of those thousands of ordinary men and women who make up the mass fields of the great city marathons. From the legend of Pheidippides and the mystery of Spiridon Louis - who won the first modern Olympic marathon in 1896 - to the agony of Paula Radcliffe, reduced to tears on the long road to Athens more than a century later, this is a story of dreams, pain, struggle and achievement.