Marathon effort to get race deferrals

By the Editorial Team · Friday, October 16, 2026

British ultrarunner Sophie Power has criticized the London Marathon’s pregnancy deferral policy for requiring athletes to pay entry fees multiple times when postponing participation due to pregnancy or childcare. Her campaign highlights ongoing challenges female athletes face in balancing competition with motherhood and calls for more flexible, affordable deferral options from major sporting events.

A British ultrarunner has raised concerns over the London Marathon’s policy on pregnancy deferrals, highlighting ongoing challenges female athletes face when balancing competition with motherhood. Sophie Power, 44, who has represented Great Britain and is known for breastfeeding her three-month-old son while competing in a 106-mile race, has campaigned for years to secure a deferral option for runners who become pregnant or are caring for young children.

Power praised the London Marathon for eventually introducing a deferral policy that allows athletes who have secured a place and paid the entry fee to postpone their participation due to pregnancy or childcare responsibilities. However, she criticized the policy for requiring runners to pay the entry fee multiple times if they defer and re-enter in subsequent years. Entry fees are set at £79.99 for British competitors and £275 for international runners.

“The London Marathon still charges you when you have a baby,” Power said at the Cheltenham Literature Festival. She added that despite several years of advocacy, women are often charged two, three, or even four times as they navigate pregnancy-related deferrals. Power also noted the difficulty in persuading large sporting events to update their policies to better accommodate athletes with family obligations.

Power’s experience includes a time when she was unable to defer her entry for the Ultra Trail du Mont Blanc race in 2018 after becoming a mother, underscoring the limited options previously available to female athletes in similar situations.

The London Marathon has not publicly responded to requests for comment on these criticisms or the structure of its deferral policy.

The issue has brought attention to broader discussions about how sports events address pregnancy and parenting, with advocates calling for more flexible, cost-effective solutions to support athletes during major life changes. Organizers face the challenge of balancing operational costs with fairness to competitors, especially as participation among women athletes continues to grow.

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