London Marathon: 26.2 Miles of Security

London Marathon: 26.2 Miles of Security

A year after Al-Qaeda suggested attacks on sports events, and in the wake of the terrorists in the Boston  Marathon bombing being killed or captured, the next 36 hours includes two teams resuming play in Boston, four NBA playoff game tips, and the London Marathon (see all start times below). The logistics of guarding the circumference of the River Thames presents an even more daunting task that arenas and ballparks – as the area of competition is as long as 1471 basketball courts, 691 hockey rinks and 384 football fields from goal post to goal post.

ET Starts Event
12:30 PM Boston Bruins host Pittsburgh Penguins
1:10 PM Boston Red Sox host Kansas City Royals
3:00 PM New York Knicks host Boston Celtics
5:30 PM Denver Nuggets host Golden State Warriors
8:00 PM Brooklyn Nets host Chicago Bulls
10:30 PM LA Clippers host Memphis Grizzlies
Sun 4 AM London Marathon

The Boston Bruins resume play Saturday at 12:30 against the best team in the NHL’s Eastern Conference, the Pittsburgh Penguins, after canceling another game due to the manhunt for the Boston Marathon terrorists. Because of the speed of play on ice skates, most do not realize that you can fit four basketball courts on one hockey rink. However, the 26.2 miles of a marathon route obviously drawfs both and cannot be completely manned by security.

In an arena, every bag is searched and unless you have hard-to-get credentials, no one is allowed to bring in a laptop or other items. With 36,000 runners in Boston, the spectators who line the route are needed to provide the tens of thousands of sets of eyes to help security.

In Boston, no one had any reason to think twice or even notice someone dropping a bag behind an 8-year-old near the finish line of the race, but the reporting of any such activity could be the difference in preventing future attempts of terror at any future sporting events starting Saturday.

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