The schedule, which will be unveiled by London 2012 officials next week, will officially confirm that the Olympic marathons - which have caused so much controversy - will start and finish in front of Buckingham Palace and include three loops of central the capital.

The race will start on The Mall with a 2.2-mile circuit of St. James; Park before three eight-mile loops past landmarks including Admiralty Arch, Birdcage Walk, St Paul's Cathedral, Leadenhall, Tower Hill and the Houses of Parliament before finishing in The Mall, where the annual London Marathon ends each April, as first revealed on insidethegames in August.

The race will only go as far east as the Tower of London despite protests by residents and MPs in Newham and Tower Hamlets against the decision to move the route away from the Olympic Stadium and the east of the city.

Tower Hamlets Council revealed earlier thus month that they are considering taking London 2012 to court in order to bring the Olympic marathon back to what they claim is its rightful home in the East End but the route now appears to be set in stone following the IAAF's approval.

Sebastian Coe, the London 2012 chair and IAAF vice president, indicated to insidethegames that he is "pleased" with the schedule that has been agreed upon in Monte Carlo.

IAAF general secretary Pierre Weiss added that there are "no major surprises" in the schedule and admitted that he fully backed the marathon route stay solely in central London as he stated it would "show off London's great iconic landmarks to the world."

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