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Less than a week after bombs exploded at the finish line of the Boston Marathon, those taking part at the London Marathon were refusing to let fear cast a shadow over Sunday's race.

On a chilly, but entirely clear, spring morning in the Blackheath area of the capital city's south-east corridor, thousands of runners and their supporters observed a 30-second silence in a show of respect to the three people killed and more than 170 injured during Monday's traumatic events and the fraught aftermath.

But today, many in the assembled crowd made clear, was not a day to be cowed or to give in. There may not have been the marked sense of jubilation or as much giddy, nervous energy as can sometimes accompany these events, but many runners were determined to make the best of it.

"We have confidence in London," said Nicola Selwood, who was waiting for the mass start. "We put on the Olympics, so we can do this." Selwood said that the city, and this race, should not be put off by terrorism.

But standing alongside Selwood was Clare Shepherd. "I just want to get around the course safely," she said. And Graham Law, another runner, added, "If there's worry, it's more for our families who are watching today."

Damian Crosby, a banker from London who is running today, said his family would be out supporting him "so obviously their security is in the back of my mind.

"But you just need to get on with it. That's the British way."

London Marathon runners have raised more than $900 million in memory of a deceased loved one or to support a charity since the event was unveiled in 1981. Sunday, there was another reason to take part: Many ran in honor of those killed or injured in Boston.

London is showing its solidarity with the people of the Commonwealth -- the Massachusetts one -- in a number of ways.

A Twitter campaign launched by Lucy-Fraser Macnamar, otherwise known as @DayCentreLucy, is encouraging runners to "place your hands over your hearts as you cross the finish line in tribute to #Boston #handsoverhearts."

Race officials said they did not have any way of tracking how many runners who competed in Boston also took part in the London Marathon.

The organizers of the London Marathon have pledged to donate about $5 for every finisher to The One Fund Boston, set up by Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick and Boston Mayor Thomas Menino to help those most affected by what occurred in Boston.

But as more than 35,000 runners and half a million spectators descended on the marathon's 26.2 mile route that snakes through the streets of the capital -- from Blackheath in the southeast, to the Mall near St James' Park, north of the River Thames -- Monday's explosions have caused London to rethink security arrangements.

London's Metropolitan police said police numbers would be boosted by 40% compared to last year, with several hundred additional officers on the streets providing "visible reassurance to the participants and spectators alike."

As a further security precaution, trash cans along the marathon's course have been removed.

"I would stress there is no change to the threat level to London and nothing at this stage to link the Boston bombings to the London marathon," said Chief Supt. Julia Pendry, the Met's ranking officer in charge of security at today's race.

"Nevertheless we want to do all we can to help provide a secure environment in which the runners, spectators and volunteers can enjoy themselves," she said.