The millionth finisher in the history of the London Marathon will cross the line on The Mall on April 24. Chris Finill, one of only 12 ever-presents to have run every London Marathon since it began, will most likely beat them to it. When he does, he can say he has run the capital’s 26.2 miles with more than a million people.

About 38,000 will run this year. A total of 964,333 finishers have completed the race so far. Finill (pictured above, in 1985) accounts for 35 of those finishes – 34 of which he has clocked at sub-three hours. His overall average is under two hours 43 minutes.

“My worst moment in any London Marathon was in 2014, when I got overtaken by the three-hour pacer at 23 miles,” says Finill, who, at 57, holds the record for the most consecutive editions of the same World Marathon Majors race completed in less than three hours. “And I knew at that point I didn’t have it in me to stay with him and continue my sub-three streak. 

“That last three miles was pretty depressing. But I’m happy to have bounced back in 2015 and gone sub-three by eight minutes.”

Finill’s fastest time in London is two hours 28 minutes; his slowest, three hours 10 minutes. To put that into perspective, the record for the course is 2:04:29, set by Kenya’s Wilson Kipsang (above) in 2014, when he was 32. Finill, now a bursar at the Duke of Kent School in Surrey, was 22 when he ran his first London. He has raced ultra-distances for Great Britain and has a run across the United States – from San Francisco to New York, in 79 days, 22 hours – on his CV. He has been a member of Harrow AC since 1974.

“So when the London Marathon came along in 1981, it was the natural thing to do,” he says. “I took part, it was great. I ran it a second time... by the time you’re on nine or 10, it becomes something you just have to do.

“It’s been increasingly acknowledged as a streak worthy of some attention, so naturally you keep doing it. By the time you run 35, trust me – I’m going to run 36 unless I’m dead.”

Can he see a time when his streak will end? “I will never stop. I will die between my last London Marathon and the next. Simple as that.”

That would be a ‘no’, then. But Finill also takes great joy in pounding London’s streets for three hours – give or take – every April.

“It is also about what [Marathon co-founder] Chris Brasher said,” he tells us. “It is the human race coming together for one day, forgetting about all the crap that’s in the news and just concentrating on something really joyous.”

The secret to his longevity, says Finill, is that he has made running part of his life. But he has rarely trained at more than 40 miles per week.

“I run to and from school, five miles from where I live, six out of 10 journeys a week,” he explains. “That’s the trick, really. You get up in the morning, you have to make the decision: I am not running. Rather than: I am running.

“And by building it into your life, not getting obsessive, backing off if injured, not wanting it too much, you can make it happen.”

Graham Willgoss
@GrahamWillgoss

Every London Marathon finisher in the 35 previous races can order their #oneinamillion T-shirt from virginmoneylondonmarathon.com