Warner‑Judd's marathon comeback

Jess Warner-Judd is set to run her first London Marathon on Sunday, April 26, less than two years after a mid-race seizure in Rome derailed her season. (bbc.com) The British runner is 31 and had been moving up in distance before the episode at the 2024 European Championships, where she collapsed with about 600 meters left in the 10,000 meters. World Athletics lists her birth date as January 7, 1995. (bbc.com) (worldathletics.org) Warner-Judd told BBC Sport she had also suffered a similar seizure earlier in a 10,000-meter race in California, but the cause was not identified at the time. She was later diagnosed with focal epilepsy, a condition in which seizures start in one area of the brain. (bbc.com) (epilepsy.org.uk) Her return has not been a straight line. BBC Sport reported that early attempts to resume training and racing failed, and Warner-Judd said she needed about a year of therapy to process the trauma from the seizures. (bbc.com) She did get back to racing, and her first marathon is already behind her. Warner-Judd finished seventh at the 2025 New York City Marathon in 2:24:45, a result Athletics Weekly said made her one of the standout British performers in the race. (athleticsweekly.com) (echo-news.co.uk) That helps explain why London is being treated as more than a routine home appearance. It is her London Marathon debut, but not her first try at 26.2 miles, and it comes after a season in which her career looked uncertain. (bbc.com) (athleticsweekly.com) Warner-Judd’s background is on the track, where she started as an 800-meter runner and later became a top British 5,000-meter and 10,000-meter athlete. World Athletics credits her with personal bests of 30:35.93 for 10,000 meters, 30:41 for 10 kilometers on the road, and 1:07:07 for the half marathon. (bbc.com) (worldathletics.org) The London race itself is one of the biggest marathons on the calendar, with London Marathon organizers listing elite women’s and men’s fields for the 2026 event and outside coverage reporting more than 59,000 total participants are expected. The race is scheduled for Sunday, April 26. (londonmarathonevents.co.uk) (rugbypass.com) (independent.co.uk) Warner-Judd told BBC Sport she feels she has been given “a second chance” at running. In London on April 26, that second chance reaches the start line in front of a home crowd. (bbc.com)