I am a student studying abroad in London for the Spring 2011 semester. After doing some research on gaining entry to the 2011 London Marathon, I discovered that the race has indeed sold out months ago, this past summer in fact. I didn't have confirmation that I would even be going abroad until November, at which point it was too late to register even through the London Marathon's official contact for getting foreign (American) runners into the event.
All I'm going to say is that I'm glad I ran Boston last year and I didn't try to get in this year through the absurd 8-hour internet stampede. I personally think that these big city races need to be more accessible. It just seems that they are getting crowded out. Running the London Marathon may be a once in a lifetime opportunity that now I might not be able to experience. I'd rather not go in as a charity runner. I've heard that runners who try to gain entry this way often end up personally paying in most of the 'donated' money. Also, I have some issues with the charity jogger culture that has developed around this trend. This is not to say that I am deriding charitable work, but only that I want to run a race, not raise money.
Is there any other possible avenue that I could take to try and get into the London Marathon? Thanks.