The triathlete will return the favor to Keires, who gave him a great time in Valencia last December.
Reigning Olympic triathlon champion Alex Yee will take over pacesetter duties at the 2026 TCS London Marathon, where he is set to support leading British hopeful Emile Keires.
The race, which will take place on April 26, will see Ye pay back Keires after the Leeds-based marathoner helped him cover 21 miles in the Valencia Marathon last December. On that occasion, Yee went on to clock 2:06:38, the second-fastest marathon time ever recorded by a British athlete.
“Emil is a great runner and he was a big help to me in last year’s Valencia Marathon, both in my training beforehand and during my walk on the day,” Yi said. “My hope is that I can repay him for that help by supporting him as much as I can in this year’s TCS London Marathon and play some part in helping him achieve his ambitions.”
Keires, who finished fourth in the Paris 2024 Olympic marathon, is the third-fastest British marathoner in history with a personal best of 2:06:46 and will again lead the home race in London.
Meanwhile, Yee made her marathon debut in the capital in 2025, finishing 14th in 2:11:08 to finish as the second British finisher.
“Running the TCS London Marathon last year was an incredible experience,” he said. “As a Londoner I thought I knew what to expect, but the crowd, support and atmosphere were more impressive than I could have ever imagined. Although I won’t be doing the full 26.2 miles again this year, I’m looking forward to taking on the experience again.”
Elsewhere, Alex Bell, fresh from victory at the GetPRO Bath Half and selected for the World Athletics Road Championships, will take on the elite British women.
The men’s race will also feature experienced pacers including Oscar Kiplimo, older brother of half-marathon world record holder Jacob Kiplimo, and Andrea Kipto, training partner of reigning champion Sebastian Soi.
However, there were several withdrawals from the British contingent. Mark Scott and George James have both dropped out of the men’s race, while Abbie Donnelly, Charlotte Perdue and Natasha Wilson have withdrawn from the women’s field. Spanish Laura Luengo will also not compete anymore.
They follow the earlier withdrawal of the Olympic champion and London 2023 winner Sifan Hasan.
Adding to the elite women’s field is national record holder Younis Chebichi Chumba of Bahrain, who boasts a personal best of 2:20:02.
Women’s field It is headlined by world record holder Tigst Assefa, as well as major champions such as Peres Jepchirchir and Helen Obiri.
In the men’s race, reigning champion Sauve faces a formidable line-up that includes Kiplimo, Tamirat Tola and Joshua Cheptegei, as well as a strong British group led by Keires, Mohamed Mohamed and Philippe Seseman.
