Olympic triathlon champion Alex Yee will act as pacemaker for Emile Cairess as the British runner aims to break the national marathon record at the London Marathon on 27 April.
Yee is returning the favour after Cairess paced him to a sensational time of 2:06:38 in Valencia last summer, the second-fastest marathon ever by a British athlete. Cairess, who holds a personal best of 2:06:46, is Britain's third-fastest marathoner and the country's best hope for success in the capital.
“Emile is a great runner, and he was a massive help to me at last year’s Valencia Marathon, both during my training block beforehand and pacing on the day,” said Yee. “My hope is that I can repay him for that help by supporting him as much as I can at this year’s TCS London Marathon and play some part in helping him achieve his ambitions.”
The British men's record is held by Mo Farah, who clocked 2:05:11 at the 2018 London Marathon. Cairess finished fourth at the 2024 Paris Olympics, while Yee made his marathon debut in London last year, finishing 14th in 2:11:08. “It was an incredible experience to race the TCS London Marathon last year,” Yee said. “As a Londoner, I thought I knew what to expect, but the crowds, the support and the atmosphere was more impressive than I ever imagined.”
Yee will be joined by experienced pacemakers including Oscar Kiplimo, older brother of half marathon world record-holder Jacob Kiplimo, and Andrea Kiptoo, a training partner of reigning London Marathon champion Sabastian Sawe.
