Two of the fastest marathon courses on earth, two very different races. Here's every stat, side by side, to help you pick.
Indicative — based on GPX data. Both courses normalised to start at 0m.
✓ marks the better number on that stat.
London and Tokyo are both fast, ballot-entry Majors, though they get there differently. London's course record was set on relatively modest elevation change (85m of gain), while Tokyo's comes with a much larger net descent (250m net drop across 445m of loss) — a course shape that flatters late splits if you've paced it right.
Both cities pack their marathon with landmarks — London runs past the Cutty Sark, Tower Bridge and Buckingham Palace, Tokyo past the Imperial Palace, Tokyo Tower and Kaminarimon. The scheduling makes them easy to combine: Tokyo in early March, London in late April, both early enough in the year to anchor a spring block. If a slight downhill assist appeals, Tokyo edges it; for the current world-record course, London is the pick.