Mutai and Mergia confirmed to run London Marathon

Geoffrey Mutai and Aselefech Mergia have been confirmed to run the London Marathon, organizers said here on Monday.

Kenya's Mutai and Mergia from Ethiopia are the two most prominent names in a second wave of athletes signed up for the London Marathon's 35th anniversary races on Sunday 26 April.

The initial fields announced in January included Kenenisa Bekele, the multiple Olympic and world track champion, who broke the Paris Marathon course record on his debut at the distance last April. But Bekele has been forced to withdraw from the 2015 race with a right Achilles tendon injury sustained during the Dubai Marathon in January.

Mutai has won the New York Marathon twice in recent years and tasted victory at the 2012 Berlin Marathon. He famously set an unofficial world best when he won the 2011 Boston Marathon in two hours three minutes two seconds, although not acceptable for official records because of the downhill Boston course.

He will be joined by world record holder Dennis Kimetto and defending London champion Wilson Kipsang, plus the second fastest marathon runner in history, Emmanuel Mutai, the reigning Chicago Marathon champion, Eliud Kipchoge, and last year's London Marathon runner-up Stanley Biwott.

The line-up contains the three fastest marathon runners of all time, and six of the 10 quickest men in history, while Mutai, who has a "legitimate" personal best of 2:04:15, is one of nine men to have run the race in under 2:05.

Mergia just returned from pregnancy to win the women's race at the Dubai Marathon in January for a record third time, while her personal best of 2:19:31 makes her the third quickest on paper in a women's field containing the last three London Marathon champions - Edna Kiplagat, Mary Keitany and Priscah Jeptoo - plus last year's runner-up, the world half marathon record holder Florence Kiplagat. Endit