Debrunner fired up for London rematch with Rainbow‑Cooper after Boston battle
2026 Elite Wheelchair Press Conference
Switzerland’s Marcel Hug is the greatest marathon wheelchair racer in history.
A three-time Paralympic marathon champion, Hug has won more Abbott World Marathon Majors races than anyone else in history. His tally currently stands at 42, after his most recent win in Boston on Monday. A win in London on Sunday would be his sixth consecutive victory in the capital and his eighth overall, which would pull him level with David Weir as the most successful athlete in London Marathon history.
On equalling David Weir’s eight London Marathon wins:
“Statistics are not very important for me, but if it happens, of course, it would be great.
“David is a great, great athlete. He’s a hero in our sport, and he did so many things for the London Marathon and wheelchair racing in general, so to be equal with him even would be a great achievement.”
On what motivates him to keep winning:
“It’s a passion for my sport, for wheelchair racing; I just love to compete. But not only the competitions, I love to do my best, to be challenged and all the tactics stuff.
“But also in training, I just love to push the wheelchair; sometimes it feels like flying. To be the best version of myself as an athlete is something that really motivates me.”
On his plans after the 2026 TCS London Marathon:
“I will go back [to Switzerland] for the track season. I have some track races and a half marathon – but the focus will be on the track races – and after that, I will go back to the marathon.”
On his advice for the young para-athletes at the 2026 TCS Mini London Marathon:
“I think it’s a great, great opportunity to participate in the Mini [London] Marathon. It’s amazing and they should try to enjoy it – that’s the most important thing, to not have too much pressure on them. Enjoy it, enjoy the crowd, do their best and keep this feeling and experience from the Mini London Marathon for future motivation.”
Watch the full press conference with Marcel Hug, Catherine Debrunner, David Weir and Eden Rainbow-Cooper
Key Quotes
David Weir
On whether he can beat Hug on Sunday:
“I don't think anyone can stop him at the moment – maybe Superman. I tried all year last year [to beat him]; it’s just mind blowing to see what he's doing at the moment. Age is not on my side, but I've had a really good winter, and Boston would have shown that, I think.
“I’ll give it my best [on Sunday] and try and compete with Marcel and the rest of the guys – because it’s a strong field, it’s a very strong field.
On whether he’d be proud to share the record of London Marathon wins with Marcel:
“Yeah, of course. You know it couldn’t go to a better person if he gets it on Sunday. We're good friends; I've trained with him and I've seen how dedicated he is to the sport and what he’s done over the years to make the sport better. Everyone’s getting faster because of him.”
On his Mini London Marathon memories:
“It’s where I started. The main [London] Marathon is where I first saw wheelchairs on TV. I said to my parents that I wanted to do it, and they said, ‘Well you can't do 26 miles, you’re eight years old,’ so we did some hunting around and my parents found out there was a Mini [London] Marathon, and the rest is history.
“I did a few other sports, but I just got this different buzz [from wheelchair racing] that I didn't get from basketball or tennis or anything like that. I just knew that I needed to do an individual sport. I won it, I think, seven times.
“I always dreamt of winning the London Marathon; that was the only race that I ever wanted to win, so when I got the opportunity to win it, it was a dream come true.”
On racing in Boston on Monday:
“I tried to keep up with Marcel in the first few miles, and I was in a good place in second. I had quite a good lead [on third] and then at about 8.3 miles the dorsal fin snapped and catapulted off into the crowd.
“I thought, well, maybe I can push like this for the rest of the marathon, but it didn't go that way. I was pushing with one arm, resting, pushing with the other arm, and when it came to the hills, I was actually resting my head on the frame of the chair to hold me in. I did that for the whole race, so it wasn’t the best race for me.”
“I landed [in the UK] on Tuesday morning, drove to Switzerland from Heathrow and got there at one in the morning. And the guys were brilliant there on Wednesday. They got me in and out of the chair to make sure it was perfect before I left. I got here [London] at 10 o’clock last night [Thursday]. I've done about 1000 miles and 16 hours in the car with a friend, so a good road trip – and a trip to Marcel’s gym!”
“I went and did a bit of a ski erg, because obviously I didn’t have a chair. It was great, just to get that little bit of soreness out of my arms from Boston because it was a different technique that I had to use to finish the race. The chair’s all fixed now; I went out for push this morning and it feels good again.”
Eden Rainbow-Cooper
“The Mini Marathon was my first ever experience in competitive wheelchair racing. I don't think that I would be here today if I didn't enjoy it as much as I did and that is thanks to all the organisers and just being there with the crowds.
“I think it's so important that these younger kids get to experience what it's like to feel that buzz and that energy of having people, you know, really root for you and want you to do well; these complete strangers. The advice is just to have fun and soak it in and remember that feeling that it gives you when you get across that Finish Line and that you've made yourself proud.”
Catherine Debrunner
“Marcel definitely played a very important role in my sports career because we grew up quite close to each other. We were born in a little village and when I met my coach before Paul, he was already then the coach of Marcel, and already then I got to know Marcel and I saw this cool chair and how fast you can go with it.
“So we have trained together for many years, and he definitely motivated me to get into sports and especially the marathon. For a very long time, I was quite scared. I always said, you must be completely crazy to do 42 kilometres, I will never do it!
“Then, I think during Covid, I was a little bored and then I thought, what could I do? Thanks to him, but also Manuela [Schär], I started doing marathon and I just love it. Marcel's so good in every marathon, on every course. It's so impressive, and he's so hard to beat. It’s simply amazing and, of course, it would be amazing if he could beat [David’s] record!
“But I think records are here to be beaten and I think [David] could live with it if he beat it. I know he's not really a statistic guy, but nevertheless, it would be very special achievement for sure, and I wish you all three of you here [at the press conference] all the best for Sunday.”
