Eight-time London Marathon Champion David Weir and two-time Boston Marathon winner Eden Rainbow-Cooper are among six elite British wheelchair racers set to take part in the 2026 London Marathon on Sunday 26th April.
Ahead of the wheelchair races, we profile each of the athletes to find out more about them and their achievements so far.
*** STAY TUNED – We will update this page on Sunday when the results come in ***
David Weir
Leading the British interest in the wheelchair men’s race will be legend David Weir, who is racing in his 27th consecutive London Marathon. The 46-year-old, who has won the London Marathon a record eight times between 2002 and 2018, announced that the Paris Paralympic Games would be his last track competition. But his passion for road racing continues.
He has shown he remains highly competitive on the world stage by finishing second at the 2025 New York City Marathon.
For David to reach a podium finish at the 2026 London Marathon, he’ll have to battle against defending champion Marcus Hug. Known as ‘The Silver Bullet’, the Swiss athlete has finished first in five consecutive London marathons and is set to match David’s record of eight if he wins this weekend.
Speaking at the London Marathon Elite Week back in January 2026, David said: “Marcel is an incredible athlete operating at the peak of his powers. Of course, I will do all I can to stop him from drawing level with me but he is, arguably, the most dominant athlete in their sport anywhere in the world right now and will go down as one of the all-time greats.”
Read: Redefining Inspiration: The Evolving Narrative Of Paralympic Athletes
Eden Rainbow-Cooper
Eden Rainbow-Cooper is the only female athlete set to represent Great Britain at the 2026 London Marathon. She has established herself among the world’s leading wheelchair racers. Since joining David Weir’s WeirArcher Academy in 2013, she had progressed from winning three golds at the 2015 Paralympic School Games to earning a silver medal at the 2022 Commonwealth Games. At the 2023 World Championships, she recorded strong track finishes, including 6th in the 1500m and 4th in the 5000m, narrowly missing a medal.
Her Paralympic debut proved challenging, with disrupted races and missed podiums, but she gained valuable experience.
On the road, she has established herself among the elite of the Abbott World Marathon Majors, finishing runner-up at the 2024 Tokyo Marathon and securing a breakthrough victory at the 2024 Boston Marathon – becoming the first British woman to win the wheelchair race.
The 24-year-old from Waterlooville, Hampshire, has continued this trajectory with consistent top finishes, including further podiums and, earlier this week (20th April 2026), another Boston Marathon win.
Eden is set to compete in her fifth consecutive London Marathon. Her most successful race was a 3rd-place finish in 2022. She finished 4th at the 2025 London Marathon, so she hopes to achieve a podium finish this year.
But like David Weir and the other male racers, she has to face another unstoppable Swiss athlete in Catherine Debrunner, who has won the last two consecutive London marathons and has multiple world and Paralympic titles.
Read: Eden Rainbow-Cooper: History Maker Turned Paralympic Contender In Wheelchair Racing
Simon Lawson
Simon Lawson is an experienced British wheelchair racer who has competed in multiple marathons over many years. His results on the road in 2015 were encouraging, with a 2nd place finish behind David Weir at the Great North Run as well as fifth place at the Berlin Marathon.
Simon finished 10th in the IPC World Cup event at the London Marathon in 2016, then won the Great Manchester 10km in May before heading to Rio de Janeiro for his debut Paralympic Games, where he finished the marathon in 14th place, clocking 1:32:15. He finished the year with a 6th-place finish in the New York marathon.
In 2017, Simon secured a British record at the Boston Marathon, finishing 13th in a time of 1:25:06.
He has also secured two consecutive Commonwealth Games bronze medals in 2018 and 2022.
The 43-year-old Cumbrian is now set to compete in his fourteenth London Marathon, with his best to finishes being 10th place in both 2015 and 2016. Last year, he completed the race in a time of 1:38:01, finishing 15th.
Before taking up wheelchair racing, Simon – son of speedway rider Steve Lawson – rode BMX and won a junior British title, until a 2001 crash left him paralysed from the chest down. He made his London Marathon debut 10 years later in 2011.
Johnboy Smith
Johnboy Smith became paralysed at the age of 16 after he was mistakenly shot by a farmer who thought he and his friends were poachers. During his rehabilitation at Stoke Mandeville Hospital, he began by doing some wheelchair bodybuilding and powerlifting. Watching the London Paralympics in 2012 made him crave the bigger stage.
He moved to athletics and started to compete in the seated throw events in his category. But at an event in Berlin in 2014, he saw wheelchair racing up close and knew then that he wanted a piece of the action.
Johnboy’s wheelchair racing career saw him win a gold medal in the marathon at the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, going one better than the silver he won at the 2018 Games on the Gold Coast, Australia. He has finished on the podium at an Abbot World Marathon Major event on three occasions, with 2nd-place finishes in New York in 2018 and Boston in 2022, plus a 3rd-place finish in Berlin in 2018. He made his first Paralympic team for the Tokyo Games in 2021, becoming the first Romany Gypsy to do so.
Johnboy is set to compete at his eleventh consecutive London Marathon. His fastest race completed on the capital city circuit was in 2018 with the time of 1:33:24. His best finish was 6th place in the 2021 London Marathon.
Read: Still Standing With MS: From Hospital Bed To Vegas Barbells
Sean Frame
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Sean Frame is a 29-year-old Scottish wheelchair racer who has been competing in para athletics since 2015. His most notable success in marathon racing was a silver medal at the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham. He also won the 2022 Scottish 10k Champs at Roon the Toon.
The Glaswegian has competed in multiple London Marathons since 2017, and his best finish was 12th in 2025 in a time of 1:34:18.
Previously, Sean was a wheelchair rugby league player and represented Scotland at the 2013 World Cup.
Michael McCabe
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Michael McCabe is a 27-year-old para athlete who was inspired to take up professional wheelchair racing when he represented his Croydon school in Panathlon competitions.
Speaking to Panathlon in 2022, Michael reflected on his achievements so far: “Panathlon is where I fell in love with sport. I am honestly not sure I’d be racing now if I had never done Panathlon… That’s 100% where my dream of becoming an athlete began.”
At that time, Michael was ranked fourth in Britain, top 10 in Europe and in the world’s top 20 wheelchair racers across all distances from 100m to marathon.
He won bronze in 2014 and 2015 at the IWAS World Junior Games in the 1500m. He also finished 5th in the 2022 Great North Run and won the 200m at the BWAA Grand Prix series event at Stoke Mandeville Stadium.
He has competed at four London marathons, with his best race being in 2022, where he finished 12th in a time of 1:37:09. He failed to finish the race in 2025 and therefore will be hoping to rectify this on Sunday.
Read: Inclusion 2028: Transforming PE And Sport For Over 240,000 Pupils With SEND
Nathan Maguire withdraws due to injury
Nathan Maguire was originally listed to compete at the 2026 London Marathon, but he has since had to withdraw due to injury.
He began wheelchair racing in 2014, winning the London Mini Marathon. He earned international success with multiple European Championship medals, two consecutive Paralympic relay silvers in Tokyo and Paris, secured gold at the 2022 Commonwealth Games and bronze at the 2025 World Championships. Last year, he finished 9th at the London Marathon.
The 28-year-old from Chester is married to fellow wheelchair racer Hannah Cockcroft, and they are expecting their first baby in May 2026.
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Fundraising for disability charities at the 2026 London Marathon
As well as the elite athletes, 59,000 other people are expected to line the streets of London to take on the 26.2 mile marathon, with many of them raising vital funds for charities across the country and around the world.
Many of these people will be supporting disability charities and many will even be disabled themselves, showing determination and resilience and that anyone can complete this marathon, no matter their ability.
Here are just a few of the individuals taking part this weekend to support disabled charities and raise awareness of disability:
- Afghanistan veteran bids to become the first triple amputee to complete the London Marathon – A triple-amputee Afghanistan veteran is taking on the London Marathon to raise money for charity while demonstrating resilience after life-changing injuries.
- Rolling Forward, Giving Back To Wheelpower – Fundraiser Rachel Bragger aims to take on the London Marathon in her everyday manual wheelchair to raise money for Wheelpower.
- Navy veteran with MND pushed to the limits – A former Royal Navy veteran with motor neurone disease is being pushed in his wheelchair at the London Marathon to raise awareness and funds for MND charity.
- Supporting MDUK and raising awareness of muscular dystrophy – Jono Whitehead, a wheelchair user with muscular dystrophy, is completing the marathon to raise money for Muscular Dystrophy UK and represent his personal journey.
- Supporting DRUK – David Wright is running the marathon to fundraise for Disability Rights UK, using the challenge to support disability rights and improve his mental health.
- Daddy Pig from Pepper Pig – Daddy Pig is running the 2026 London Marathon in costume to raise funds and awareness for deaf children following his son George’s hearing loss.
Of course, we can’t mention everybody taking part, but if you or someone you know is doing the London Marathon, let us know by sharing your photos and videos on social media and tagging Crip Life. Good luck everybody!
You can watch all the action from the 2026 London Marathon on BBC One and BBC iPlayer on Sunday 26th April from 8:30am,