Sir Jim Ratcliffe completed the TCS London Marathon in 4:30:52 and immediately raced to Wembley for Manchester United ’s FA Cup semi-final.
The INEOS chief, 71, ran two minutes faster than last year across the 26.2 miles despite complaining of a hamstring niggle. He was planning to head straight to Wembley to see United face Coventry, which kicked off at 3:15pm, though it was likely to prove a logistical nightmare with many road closures.
And speaking to BBC after crossing the line, he said: "About four and a half hours, something like that. At my age that is not bad. I need to be quick, I need to be there at half-time."
It was Ratcliffe’s eighth time running London and he is approaching two dozen marathons completed. He was the 62nd placed finisher over 70 and 19,497th overall. Race director Hugh Brasher confirmed ahead of the race that Ratcliffe, Britain’s second richest man, would be given additional security when on the course, though he would not provide any specific details.
Ratcliffe was also asked if there was any similarities between running marathons and owning a football club, to which he replied: "There are some parallels I have to say, but it just requires some grit.
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“Running a marathon after 30km is difficult. We're not there with football yet. One of the biggest problems with football is you get these new guys coming into the team, they're capable people but they're all on gardening leave.
“It's a big problem in football. The fans are impatient. It's a journey, they have to be patient. It's not a light switch. We will turn it around."
Sir Jim Ratcliffe after finishing the TCS London Marathon.
Third placed Emile Cairess of Great Britain celebrates on the podium (Getty Images)Meanwhile, Emile Cairess ran the second fastest time ever by a Brit to finish an impressive third in the TCS London Marathon. And the emotional Yorkshireman dedicated his 2:06:46 to a young cousin who has recently come out of a coma following a car accident.
Cairess, securing his place on the GB Olympic team, climbed five places in the final three kilometres to claim a spot on the podium, behind Kenya’s Alexander Munyao and Ethiopian legend Kenenisa Bekele.
The 26-year-old had “no idea” he was in third until 200m from the end and he was followed closely by Southampton's Mahamed Mahamed, who will fill the third and final spot on the train to Paris after running 2:07:05. But Sir Mo Farah’s national record of 2:05:11 was never in realistic reach on a windy morning.
And a “proud” Cairess explained how he was motivated by Oliver Burton, 22, who suffered serious injuries following a crash a couple of months ago.
“He’s like a little brother to me,” Cairess said. “A couple of months ago he was in a bad accident and was in a coma for about a month. He's just come out of ICU a few days ago. They finally moved him to a different ward. It was so stressful, touch and go at some points.
“It's been tough. This morning I was really emotional. I've not experienced anything like that before and I hope not to experience anything like it in the future.”
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