The London Marathon returns on Sunday (April 26) with thousands of people taking part to test their endurance over a gruelling 26.2miles and lots raising money for charity.

Starting in Blackheath and snaking around the capital, it’s one of the biggest sporting events in the country.

But here are 26.2 things you may not know about the London Marathon...

1. This is the 35th London Marathon. Some 20,000 people wanted to run in the first race in March 1981 but only 7,747 were accepted. American Dick Beardsley and Norwegian Inge Simonsen led home the 6.255 finishers in a dead heat in 2:11:48. This year, more than 36,000 people are expected to cross the finish line.

2. The total number of London Marathon finishers since 1981 should reach around 960,000.

3. Fewer than five per cent of runners in the first race were women, there were no wheelchair athletes and no fancy dress runners. This weekend, around 37 per cent will be women and there will be 70 wheelchair athletes competing.

4. The men’s course record is 2:04:29, set last year by Kenyan Wilson Kipsang.

5. Paula Radcliffe broke the World Record at the London Marathon in 2003, which still stands at 2:15:25.

News Shopper: Paula Radcliffe

6. More than £50 million is raised for charity each year and more than three-quarters of runners raise money for charity. The total raised over the last 34 years is around £716million.

7. The hottest London Marathon was in 2007, when the temperature at midday was 21.7 C.

8. The coldest was 7.6 C in 1994. The prediction for this weekend is 14 C.

9. Celebrities running this year include F1 racer Jenson Button, Olympic gold medal winning rower James Cracknell, Radio One’s Greg James, Heart FM and This Morning’s Jenni Falconer, Made in Chelsea’s Oliver Proudlock and CJ off Eggheads.

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10. In 2008, Deriba Merga finished in 2:06:38, less than a minute and a half behind the winner Martin Lel. His time would have won every race in the 20th century, plus 2001, 2003, 2005, 2006 and 2007 but unfortunately for him, the quality of the race meant he came in sixth.

11. Freestyle footballer John Farnworth completed the marathon while keeping the ball in the air between his right and left foot with every step in 2011. He finished in 12 hours 15 mins. There is now a time limit of eight hours.

News Shopper:   An international freestyle footballer brought his football juggling skills to Kingston town centre on Wednesday ahead of attempting the London marathon on Saturday.

12. Ingrid Kristiansen won the London Marathon four times: 1984, 1985, 1987, 1988. British paralympic legends David Weir and Tanni Grey-Thompson have both won six times each and Weir is aiming to make it seven this weekend.

13. The slowest London Marathon was five days and eight hours, a record that belongs to Lloyd Scott wearing a 110lb deep-sea diving suit.

News Shopper: Lloyd Scott with 10-year-old pupil Daniel Bell during his visit to Brampton Primary School BX1115/C

14. London reverend Steve Chalke MBE raised the most money ever at a marathon, raking in £2,330,159.38 in 2011.

15. 56 past or present MPs have run the London Marathon. Derbyshire West tory MP Matthew Parris was the fastest, running 2:32L57 in 1985.

16. Croydon couple Mick Gambrill and Barbara Cole were the first pair to get married during the London Marathon. They stopped at Charlton House to be married by a registrar.

News Shopper: STATELY: The safest way to view Charlton House 	 CM2786/1

17. Fauja Singh from Essex is thought to be the oldest London Marathon runner, aged 93 in 2004 where he ran 6 hours 7 minutes. Aged 100, he became the world’s oldest marathon runner when he ran the Toronto Marathon in 2011. The oldest woman to complete the London race is believed to be Jenny Wood-Allen, aged 90, in 2002.

18. The 1981 winners Dick Beardsley, Inge Simonsen and Joyce Smith with be the official starters of this year’s men’s race and mass race.

19. No race has been as close as the very first race’s dead heat, though less than one second separated Gezahenge Abera and Stefano Baldini in first and second in 2003. The widest gap between first and second in the men’s race was 2:57s between Hugh Jones and Ovylnd Dahl in 1982. In the women’s race, nine minutes separated winner Joyce Smith and Gillian Drake in second in the very first race.

20. World Champions Mo Farah, David Weir, Shelly Woods and untouchable triathlete brothers Jonathan and Alistair Brownlee were all uncovered at the Mini London Marathon, which is 30 years old this year.

News Shopper: Disaster banner mo farah front.jpg for the homepage

21. In a hard race on a hot, humid day runners can lose up to four litres of fluid through sweating and exhalation.

22. Water is available to runners at every mile point after mile three and around 750,000 plastic 250ml bottles of water will be supplied.

23. Lucozade Sport is given to runners at the start and at 5, 10, 15, 19 and 24 miles. The 380ml bottles are 100 per cent recyclable. Lucozade gels are also given out at 14 and 21 miles.

24. Elite athletes often have their own specially prepare drinks which are collected on Saturday night and kept in secure, cool conditions overnight and taken to the appropriate 5km points. They are put on specially numbered tables at eight points throughout the race.

25. A blue line will mark the shortest possible route. It takes company Wilson and Scott five to six hours overnight to paint it using Tempro paint that dries almost instantly and is stable enough to last for three days without fading. It is washed off with a special non-polluting solvent and gallons of water, taking about the same time it took to paint, and is all gone by 7pm on race day.

26. The most popular occupation for participants at last year’s marathon was teaching or working in education, with 1,408 runners. Accountants (1,357) and administrators (1,108) were close behind.

26.2 Amazingly, the most significant ever...