London

Mo Farah and Wilson Kipsang

Britain’s double Olympic and World champion Mo Farah will face some of the greatest marathon runners of all time when he makes his full marathon debut at this year’s Virgin Money London Marathon.

Farah races over 26.2 miles for the first time on Sunday 13 April, when he will join an elite men’s field that includes marathon world-record holder Wilson Kipsang, Olympic and World marathon champion Stephen Kiprotich, reigning London Marathon champion Tsegaye Kebede, and London course record holder Emmanuel Mutai.

Farah ran the first half of the race in 2013 to assess the course and opposition in preparation for his full marathon debut this April.

He went on to win the World Championships 10,000m title in Moscow last August before retaining his World 5,000m crown, adding another global track double to his twin Olympic triumphs from London 2012.

The 30-year-old then ran his fastest half marathon when second in the Great North Run last September and has since been training hard for his first marathon race.

Valuable experience

“I gained a lot of valuable experience running part of the course alongside the top guys last year and can’t wait to race over the full distance this April,” said Farah, who will have an eye on the long-standing UK record of two hours seven minutes 13 seconds.

“The London Marathon always attracts the world’s best runners to its elite fields and this year will be no different. I am expecting it to be one of my toughest races and a real learning experience.

“I had another great year on the track in 2013, but the marathon is my main focus for this year. As a young boy growing up in London it has always been my ambition to run the London Marathon and to be able to make my marathon debut in my home town is very special.”

It will be even more special if Farah can reward his British fans with victory, but the debutant will come up against an experienced field that includes three men who have run quicker than two hours four minutes and six who have broken 2:05.

dramatic finish

Quickest of the lot is Wilson Kipsang, the Kenyan who broke the world record when he won last September’s Berlin Marathon in 2:03.23. Kipsang will be keen to regain the London Marathon title he won in 2012 just a few months before claiming the bronze medal at the London Olympics.

Kipsang was fifth in last year’s race when Tsegaye Kebede triumphed here for the second time, the Ethiopian coming from behind in a dramatic finish to regain the crown he first won in 2010.

Kebede is the sole non-Kenyan to win the men’s race in the last 10 years and his aim in 2014 is to become the fourth man to win the title three times.

Kebede ran his personal best of 2:04:38 to win the 2012 Chicago Marathon and he clinched the 2012/13 half-million dollar World Marathon Majors prize when he was second in the New York City Marathon last November.

The second quickest man in the field is Emmanuel Mutai who set the course record when he won the London Marathon in 2011.

The Kenyan looked odds on to win again last year until Kebede overtook him in the final mile. Mutai was runner-up again in last October’s Chicago Marathon when he clocked 2:03:52 to become the fourth fastest man of all time.

His namesake, Geoffrey Mutai, will also be among the favourites after running the fastest marathon ever in 2011. He won the Boston Marathon that year in 2:03:02, although it did not qualify as an official record because of the nature of the Boston course.

One of the most consistent men on the marathon circuit, Mutai also won the 2012 Berlin Marathon in 2:04:15 – his best time on a legitimate course – and has twice triumphed in the New York City Marathon in recent years.

He dropped out on his London debut last April so will be keen to make amends this time.