London GFA

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hgreav 23 Oct 9:26am, 23 Oct 2025 149 posts	Quote Pin hgreav I just want to check because I'm hoping that somehow I can get around it, but I just ran 3 minutes under the GFA time at York. I have unfinished business with London after my last GFA entry and missing a target time, so I wanted to enter to redeem myself. But York was on 19th Oct - does this mean I have to wait until next year to use this time? What if they move the goalposts between now and then? I'm fit now and I wanted to keep some momentum.... I think I know what the answer is, but I just want to hear it from someone else before i resign myself to not entering for 26.
Shades 23 Oct 9:35am, 23 Oct 2025 10,018 posts	Quote Pin Shades If your qualifying time is gained past the period stated for 2026 GFA, then you won't be eligible to apply for a GFA place. Also in the past 3 minutes might not be enough of a buffer, I think one year it was 4 minutes for the women. Perhaps enter another marathon and try and knock a couple of minutes off and that should ensure a GFA place in 2027 for you.
hgreav 23 Oct 9:49am, 23 Oct 2025 150 posts	Quote Pin hgreav Dangit, thought so! I got into 2024 with a 3 minute 6 second buffer so I suppose I was assuming that the same could happen again. Ah well, back to the drawing board...
Shades 23 Oct 9:54am, 23 Oct 2025 10,020 posts	Quote Pin Shades I understand your frustration. Any chance of a place through your running club?
hgreav 24 Oct 8:11am, 24 Oct 2025 151 posts	Quote Pin hgreav Sadly I'm not a member of any club. Never mind. I didnt really enjoy running London anyway - crowds aren't the motivator for me that they are to some other people. I mostly want to do it to lay my frustrations at my last attempt to rest!
Shades 24 Oct 8:30am, 24 Oct 2025 10,044 posts	Quote Pin Shades There are plenty of other marathons to do, and IMHO much better races. I've achieved a GFA time twice but never used them as never want to run London again.
Alun 31 Oct 9:48pm, 31 Oct 2025 228 posts	Quote Pin Alun Shades wrote:I understand your frustration. Any chance of a place through your running club? Sadly the chances of getting a club place are shrinking every year, my club was given 2 places for the 2024 London Marathon but it's now just the 1 place for 2026. It's also frustrating that London sticks rigidly to the 1 year validity for Good for Age whereas other Majors have a 2 year validity, as we age there's a greater chance of an injury preventing us from using our hard earned places because they can't be deferred.
57.5 Degrees of Pain 31 Oct 10:50pm, 31 Oct 2025 30,374 posts	Quote Pin 57.5 Degrees of Pain Defining Good for Age closer to 'Is Good for Age' rather than 'Was Good for Age' does not seem unreasonable. Might give more people the chance to qualify GFA