Jessica Anderson awarded world record after Guinness World Records amended guidelines

#WhatNursesWear campaign fights for change on social media

Official statement from GWR below

Update: Anderson has now been awarded a silver medal by the Chief Nursing Officer, to recognise her professional excellence.

Jessica Anderson made headlines in April after finishing the London Marathon in her nurses uniform, only to be told it didn't meet the guidelines in the Guinness World Record's rules of what a nurses uniform should be. Sparking a global campaign on social media, eventually GWR changed the rules.

Anderson has now been awarded a silver medal by the Chief Nursing Officer, Dr Ruth May, to recognise "those who go beyond the expectations of their role to support patients".

When giving her the badge, Dr May told Ms Anderson: “Part of what you did was leave a legacy that the nursing uniform perception has to change, and it’s something that really connected with me. Thank you for your nursing leadership and for what you did for our profession.”

A statement posted on the GWR site read:

"Over the weekend it has become quite clear to Guinness World Records that our guidelines for the fastest marathon wearing a nurse’s uniform were outdated, incorrect and reflected a stereotype we do not in any way wish to perpetuate.

"Having received the official timings from London Marathon this morning we are pleased to award Jessica with the Guinness World Records title for the fastest marathon wearing a nurse’s uniform for her attempt on Sunday 28 April (3 hours, 8 minutes and 22 seconds), and have notified her as such.

"I want to take this opportunity to reassure everybody concerned that Guinness World Records is absolutely committed to ensuring we uphold the highest standards of equality and inclusiveness. Therefore, we unreservedly apologise and accept full responsibility for the mishandling of Jessica Anderson’s application.

"Moreover, we have taken the decision to no longer allow fancy dress clothing for this category and will introduce guidelines which reflect the clothes worn by nurses in the UK and around the world.

"We are proud to have partnered with the London Marathon for the last 12 years. The original plan was to create a handful of record titles to match the already large appetite for running the marathon in fancy dress, and in 2007, seven people ran the marathon with the goal of achieving a world record. Since then, we have seen hundreds of records attempted and broken, as well as thousands of pounds raised for numerous charities. At the 2019 marathon, 87 people started the race hoping to achieve a Guinness World Records title.

"The review of this category is the first review of each one of our 200+ marathon titles we will be conducting as a priority, to ensure we do not allow any costumes which bring a profession or any other subject into disrepute. Any we discover will be either amended to reflect modern standards, or deactivated.

"Happening concurrently to this is a constant scrutiny of not just marathon record titles, but all of our record titles, as we continue to strive to ensure we create, monitor and catalogue record-breaking feats which truly reflect the world we live in today."



Samantha Fay



Senior Vice President, Guinness World Records

As RW originally reported on 3rd of April, Jessica Anderson is a nurse who ran the London Marathon wearing her nurses uniform, aiming to beat the current record of 3:08:54.

She ran 3:08:22 at the London Marathon and now her record has been recognised by Guinness World Records (GWR) as they have changed the criteria surrounding what constitutes a nurse's uniform.

Speaking to Runner's World before the new ruling, Jessica said, "I was quite taken aback when I read that they’d rejected my application and I did email them to ask them to reconsider but they said no. I get that it’s supposed to be a fun thing but their definition is just so outdated. Some of the nurses I work with do wear dresses but mostly we wear scrubs or a tunic and trousers. I’ve certainly never seen a male nurse wearing a dress to work."

The ’traditional’ nurses uniform as recognised by the Guinness World Records. Getty Images

"I’m sure Guinness World Records don’t intend to cause offence but it would be nice if they decided to revise their criteria instead of reinforcing old gender stereotypes."



The #WhatNursesWear hashtag on twitter took up the fight over the weekend with thousands of nurses posting pictures of themselves wearing scrubs, highlighting the need for the rules to be changed.

Jessica contacted GWR back in February about her attempt but was told she missed the deadline for costume submissions. GWR further explained that the requirements for all costumes is very specific to ensure there is distinction between attempts and that her nurses uniform matched similar criteria to that of the fastest marathon run as a doctor and that the reason for the old fashioned and stereotypical nurses outfit was to aid this differentiation.



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This however doesn't change the fact that the criteria was unrepresentative of what nurses wear, which was the main source of frustration for Jessica and countless other nurses across the country.



Jessica was running in aid of the Barts Charity to raise money for the staff and unit at the Acute Admissions Unit at the Royal London Hospital, where she has worked for nearly 7 years.

Congratulations to Jessica on running a fantastic time and raising well over £5000 for her cause.





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