Olympic Marathon Trials

9 January 2021 · Updated 23 September 2026 · 1 min read · Artisan Design

The Olympic Marathon Trials take place at Kew Gardens on 26 March 2021, with three spots on the British Olympic team for Tokyo up for grabs. Men need to beat 2:11:30 and women 2:29:30 to qualify.

Callum Hawkins is already pre-selected for the men's team; every other place is still open. The course is a fast, flat 5.5km loop, designed to minimise elevation and wind resistance and give athletes the best possible shot at the qualifying time. Kew Gardens was chosen specifically to minimise pandemic-related risk: "The venue was selected due to its ability to minimise issues that may arise as a result of the current pandemic," according to UKA.

British distance running is in good shape right now, and the qualifying times should be well within reach for the top competitors on the day. We spoke to four athletes preparing for the trials — Hayley Carruthers, Becky Briggs, Tom Evans and Paul Navesey — in individual profiles.