London Marathon Events (LME) has teamed up with the Council for Responsible Sport to measure the social and environmental impact of the 2023 TCS London Marathon.

In 2023, LME will be using the ReScore app, a cloud-based application developed for the Council for Responsible Sport by Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), which enables event organisers to measure, track, report and verify progress across a broad range of social and environmental indicators for sports events.

This builds on LME’s work over recent years on improving its environmental impact, which has been reported through an annual environmental report. It forms part of LME’s commitment to drive positive change in environmental sustainability through its own actions and to inspire its stakeholders and partners to do the same.

Working with the ReScore app enables LME to begin the process of quantifying and demonstrating the social impact of the organisations work on inspiring activity in all ages and demographics, which has been the overarching focus of its work over the past decade.

ReScore will also track all the positive social impact of the TCS London Marathon, including the impact of LME’s work to create the most diverse, equitable and inclusive marathon in the world and enabling charities to raise millions of pounds.

ReScore will assist in verifying LME’s sustainability progress to help it reach its carbon emission goals which include reaching net zero carbon emissions across its own operations by 2024 and removing more carbon than it emits across all event operations by 2025.
To achieve this, LME has introduced a wide range of initiatives across its events and the 2023 TCS London Marathon will see:

• £26 carbon levy paid by all international participants used to fund carbon removal and offset projects
• New Balance finisher T-shirts made from 100 per cent recycled polyester
• Reusable Mile Markers created in 2022 made from event waste and recycled ocean plastic
• 100 per cent electric lead vehicles, together with more than 50 per cent of logistics vehicles used in event set up and breakdown
• Cleaner event power including generators and baggage vehicles fuelled by Hydrotreated Vegetable Oil (HVO), which is significantly lower in carbon and particulate emissions than diesel
• Partnership with Trees not Tees, offering participants the chance to opt out of a finisher T-shirt and plant a tree instead
  Medal ribbon made from recycled materials
• Finisher bag made from sugar cane
• Specially designed bottle belts (made from 95 per cent recycled materials) to enable participants to carry hydration and reduce the waste of water
• Drink, Drain, Drop campaign to ensure drinks bottles (all made from recycled plastic) are collected and returned for recycling to Buxton
• Clothing discarded at the start collected and sent for reuse and recycling

Hugh Brasher, Event Director for London Marathon Events, said: “London Marathon Events is passionately committed to maximising our social impact and minimising the environmental impacts of our events. Our environmental focus is to Eliminate, Reduce, Reuse and Recycle and we are working towards achieving net zero carbon emissions across our own events by 2024. Our social impact has driven the organisation for many years, and we are delighted to be starting to measure it through the ReScore app, developed by TCS. It will enable us to have a world-recognised ranking for all the work we are doing to drive positive change. We have already achieved a lot, but we know there is far more to do.”

Amit Kapur, Country Head, TCS UK & Ireland at TCS, said: “TCS London Marathon participants deserve an inclusive and sustainable event that contributes to a greater future for all of us. Best-in-class digital technology can help make this future a reality. Along with London Marathon Events, TCS is bringing technology for purpose. We are delighted to introduce LME to the ReScore app, which will lead to positive environmental and social impact and help them to reduce their carbon footprint.”

Kevin Phelan, Board Member, Council for Responsible Sport, said: “London Marathon Events is taking a truly systematic approach to not only track and measure its progress on environmental, social and economic factors at the TCS London Marathon through the use of ReScore, but is demonstrating strong leadership and innovation in critical areas for the industry. We are excited to be collaborating with LME on their journey and their commitment to responsible sport.”

As part of LME’s commitment to improving its environmental impact reporting, LME is now working with Green Element, a specialist carbon consultancy, and using their Compare Your Footprint platform to improve data capture and analysis. This will enable LME to produce more accurate carbon emissions calculations and to set short-term targets and action plans to reduce these.