2 World Record Holders Decided the 2027 London Marathon Schedule—with a Game of Rock, Paper, Scissors

When it was announced that the 2027 London Marathon would run over two days, allowing 100,000 runners to take part in the iconic race over a single weekend, there were immediate questions about who would run on what day and whether there was a “better” day to compete.Well, those questions have been answered by a game of rock, paper, scissors.The contest was between two reigning London Marathon champions and current world record holders, Sabastian Sawe and Catherine Debrunner, and was overseen by an official adjudicator from Guinness World Records.In a best-of-three game, it was Debrunner who took an early lead from the gun with a classic paper wraps rock. There was some tactical back and forth after this, with both Sawe and Debrunner going on the attack with scissors, then rock, until Debrunner surged ahead with a decisive scissors cuts paper.Thanks to this victory, we now have it confirmed that the elite women and elite women’s wheelchair athletes will compete on the Sunday, alongside the Championship and Good For Age women, while the elite men and elite men’s wheelchair athletes, alongside the Championship and Good For Age men, will race on Saturday.The mass events will be split between days, with a mix of men, women, and non-binary athletes competing on Saturday and Sunday.The 2027 London Marathon is set for April 24-25.Find Your Next Running PlaylistBen is Runner's World's Multiplatform Director and has worked at the title for over 13 years. He has always had a deep interest in running shoes and tech and has amassed a wealth of knowledge on running products during this time and through countless hours of testing. Ben also enjoys exploring the science behind running and how it informs advances in training and racing. He is also the co-host of the weekly podcast. Ben is a firm believer that running is just as much about adventure and fun as about chasing PBs, and he likes nothing more than a day spent explore new trails.