The Frenchman, who was London champion in 2001 and a potential threat to Britain's defending champion, David Weir (pictured below), this Sunday (April 22), suffered a broken finger when his chair was hit by a backing-up car near his home.

"It wasn't too serious for me – it was only one finger and some wounds – but my chair is out," said the 47-year-old, a veteran of 10 London Marathons.

"Unfortunately, I must stay at home for a few days.

"I am so sorry to miss the race."


Weir (pictured), a double gold medallist from Beijing 2008, remains favourite to win his sixth London Marathon title, matching the record of Baroness Tanni Grey-Thompson who won six women's wheelchair crowns between 1992 and 2002.

Among the 32-year-old Londoner's rivals will be Josh Cassidy, who broke the Boston Marathon course record with a runaway victory last Monday (April 16); the Canadian was London champion in 2010 and finished fifth last year.

World record holder Heinz Frei from Switzerland, a London winner three times in the late 1990s and second to Weir in 2011, will also be a threat for victory.

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