Times Sport editor John Hutchins offers his personal opinion on the events, topics and personalities in the world of sport.

THE London Marathon is surely one of the great sporting events because it never fails to produce so many uplifting stories each year.

What I love about this particular event is that it is not just about those international athletic superstars, those at their competitive peak.

I also like the fact that in a field of more than 40,000 participants the elite ran (perhaps if not with the entire entry) alongside those who may be taking part in their first marathon – not many sports can produce such an eclectic field.

Let’s not forget the distance – 26 miles 365 yards – roughly the distant between Tavistock and Plymouth city centre and back!

The stamina and sheer determination by these runners is breathtaking (pun always intended)!

Kenyans Keninis Bekele (2 hours 5 minutes 48 seconds) and Mary Keitany (2 hrs 17mins 1sec) deservedly won the male and female races. I also marvelled at David Weir powering home in a ‘wheelchair’ against all those other phenomenal, fellow disabled athletes.

Then there are the thousands of people, who not only enjoy the challenge but raise thousands of pounds for their chosen, worthy charities. I include the slightly eccentric who dress up as a telephone box, Darth Vadar, a sleeping bag (yes – a sleeping bag) or lug a washing or karaoke machine on their back. Let’s face it training and running a marathon is one thing but also organising and collecting monies is no easy task either. But for me, the highlight was Swansea Harrier, Matthew Rees, who saw fellow runner David Wyeth, of Chorlton Runners, Manchester, struggling 150 yards from the finish and – ignoring his own quest for a personal best and his months of training for the event – choose to guide his fellow runner up The Mall to cross the finishing line together.

The fact is that every single one of those who took part have a great story to tell. Well done to everyone of them. Sport at its best! I salute them all.