Paula Radcliffe's three London wins.

Quick answer. Paula Radcliffe won the London Marathon three times: on 14 April 2002 in 2:18:56, on 13 April 2003 in 2:15:25, and on 17 April 2005 in 2:17:42. The 2003 time was a world record, and London Marathon Events still lists it as the women's course record for a mixed race. England Athletics says she is still the last British woman to win the London Marathon.

How many times did Paula Radcliffe win the London Marathon?

Three times in four years. Every result below is from her World Athletics profile and the race reports of the day. Each race was on a Sunday. The margins are calculated from the official times.

2002: the first marathon.

London 2002 was the first marathon Paula ever ran. She was already world champion at cross country and the half marathon, and World Athletics' report says she "opted to run solo for nearly 20 miles". Her 2:18:56 was "a world best for a women's only race".

She had been aiming higher. "I wanted to get the total world record, Catherine Ndereba's 2:18:47," she said afterwards. She missed it by 9 seconds. Her description of the moment the race changed is pure London: "Over Tower Bridge, the crowd gave me such a lift, I just took off." Her summary was shorter: "I gave it everything. I couldn't give any more."

Six months later, on 13 October 2002, she won the Chicago Marathon in 2:17:18, a new world record.

2003: the world record.

She came back to London on 13 April 2003 and ran 2:15:25. World Athletics reported that she "led every step of the way" and became "the first woman to break 2:16 for the distance". She passed halfway in 68:02 and ran the second half in 67:23, with male pacemakers alongside.

The time stood as the women's world record for 16 years. Twelve years later, London Marathon race director Hugh Brasher said: "Anyone who saw Paula's world record in 2003 will remember it as one of the outstanding athletics performances of our time." The full story of what happened to the record is in our article on the world record.

2005: the third win.

On 17 April 2005, at the 25th London Marathon, Paula won in 2:17:42. World Athletics called it "a five-minute victory" over Romania's Constantina Dita, who finished in 2:22:50. The pacemakers dropped away after six miles and she ran most of the race alone.

The run set the women-only world record. That mark lasted 12 years, until Mary Keitany ran 2:17:01 in London in 2017.

What is the London Marathon course record for women?

There are two, because the women's elite race can be run with or without male pacemakers. London Marathon Events lists them as:

• Women, mixed race: 2:15:25, Paula Radcliffe, 2003.
• Women only: 2:15:41, Tigst Assefa, 2026.

So 23 years on, no woman has run the London course faster than Paula did in 2003. The same page lists her 2:15:25 as the fastest time by a British woman at the race. In January 2026, England Athletics wrote that "Paula still stands as the last British woman to win the London Marathon after her victories in 2002, 2003 and 2005."

Why does London matter so much to Paula?

It started before she was a runner. According to World Athletics, the race first inspired her as a child in the early 1980s, when she travelled to London from her home in Bedford to watch her father run. World Athletics' ten iconic London moments also record that in 1985, as an 11-year-old, she watched Ingrid Kristiansen break the world record there, and that she "went on to break the London course record in 2002."

London was also where she chose to finish. She ran what was expected to be her final competitive race at the 35th London Marathon on 26 April 2015, and was named the first winner of the John Disley London Marathon Lifetime Achievement Award. Asked about that day in a 2017 Irish Farmers Journal interview, she said: "It was very emotional."

Where Immufix fits.

Paula is a co-owner of the company that makes Immufix, and she has taken it every morning since 1998. You can read her own account on her journey page. Immufix is one 25g scoop in around 200ml of water, once a day, as part of a varied diet. Magnesium and vitamin D contribute to normal muscle function, and magnesium, vitamin C and the B vitamins riboflavin, niacin and B6 contribute to the reduction of tiredness and fatigue. Every amount is on the science page.

The short version.

• Paula won the London Marathon three times: 2002 in 2:18:56, 2003 in 2:15:25 and 2005 in 2:17:42.
• 2002 was her marathon debut. 2003 was a world record. 2005 was a women-only world record.
• Her 2:15:25 is still the London course record for a woman in a mixed race.
• She is still the last British woman to win the London Marathon.
• She ran her final competitive race there on 26 April 2015.

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