The London Marathon is a charity marathon which started in 1981 and has been held each spring in London.. The race is currently sponsored by Virgin Money, as the Virgin London Marathon. Previously the event was sponsored by Flora (from 1996 to 2009). The 2010 London Marathon, the thirtieth race, took place on Sunday, 25 April 2010. This marathon is one of the five top international marathons.(one of the world marathon majors) Very large amounts of money are raised for charity, much more than in other marathons. According to the race organisers, it is now the largest annual fund raising event in the world.