Marathon organisers are promising a quicker course than ever after a taxing hill was taken out of the revised course.

A hill in Rottingdean has been removed from the Brighton Marathon 2014 course while prize money has also been doubled making the event the second most lucrative in the country.

The total prize pot is now £33,700 making Brighton second only to the London Marathon with the leading male and female runners each picking up more than £3,500.

Brighton Marathon organisers say the adjustment to the course for next year’s event will mean faster times.

Since it was first staged in 2010, course records have tumbled from 2:19:05 to 2:10:46 for the men and from 3:05:20 to 2:28:50 for the women.

The organisers of the race, Grounded Events, expect that the changes will bring the course record down still further to under 2:10.

A time under 2:09 for the men and 2:27 for the women will trigger an extra bonus of more than £5,000 while any UK male who succeeds in breaking 2:17 and any British female going under 2:36 will receive £1,000.

Race Founder Tim Hutchings said: “We’re constantly working hard to bring our race, in just four years already the best UK marathon outside London, closer to real world class.

“This route change might not be that important to the majority of our participants but it certainly is to the elite who cherish fast times.”

The fifth edition of the race will take place on Sunday, April 6 next year.