HAVE you been inspired by this year's London Marathon runners?

If this year's event encouraged you to dust off your trainers and get out running, you might be hoping to be part of next year's race. 

Last year there was a world record number of applications for the London Marathon with 386,050 registering for a ballot place. 

Just over 58% of the UK applications for 2018 were from people who have never run a marathon and more than 45% of the total UK applicants were women (also a new record).

To be one of more than 40,000 people running in next year's event, here's what you need to know. 

When does the ballot for the 2019 London Marathon open?

A. Monday, April 30. It then closes five days later at 5pm on Friday, May 4.

Click here to enter

When do I find out if I have secured a place through the ballot?

All applicants will hear the outcome of their ballot entry in the first week of October 2018.

Everyone from the UK who gains a place in the ballot is sent the Congratulations magazine.

How is the ballot drawn?

It is a totally random ballot with no weighting - just like the draw for the National Lottery.

Why is the ballot now open for five days?
The popularity of the London Marathon had meant that the online application system for the ballot, previously capped at 125,000 entries, had been closing in a shorter timespan each year and was projected to fill in less than eight hours for the 2016 event.

Many people were unable to enter for previous ballots due to religious holidays, shift work, family commitments and many other reasons.

The decision was made to keep the ballot application system open for five days for the 2016 event. Extending the entry window meant that everyone who would have liked to enter had a fair chance to do so.

In particular, it gave more time for new runners, who may have been inspired by watching the race on TV, to apply.

The same system has been used since then.

Why has the system where you get a place if you’ve been unsuccessful for five successive years been scrapped?

Put simply, the numbers were so big it became mathematically impossible. The scheme ended in 2010 as it was becoming impossible to offer a guaranteed entry to everyone who had applied unsuccessfully in the ballot for five successive years.

This was a scheme offered by us, the organisers, and not by a sponsor.

What happens if I don't get a place via the ballot in 2019?

You can still gain an entry by running for a charity.

There is a full listing of charities with places to fill on the London Marathon website. 

Click here to view them.