The marathon is a long-distance running race officially set at 42.195 kilometers (26.219 miles), now a staple of the modern Olympic Games. While ancient Greece didn’t have a specific race of this distance, the concept was introduced by French philologist Michel Bréal (1832-1915). He convinced Pierre de Coubertin to include it in the first modern Olympic Games in Athens in 1896, commemorating the Greek victory over the Persians at Marathon in 490 BC. The race is named after the legendary run of the Athenian soldier Pheidippides, who ran from the battlefield of Marathon to Athens to announce the victory with the words “νενικήκαμεν” (we have conquered).
The winner of the first Olympic marathon in 1896 (men only) was Spiridon Louis, a Greek water carrier. He completed the race in 2 hours, 58 minutes, and 50 seconds. The marathon distance wasn’t standardized initially. The marathon runners in Athens covered around 40 kilometers, as did subsequent races. In 1924, the International Olympic Committee standardized the distance to the current 42.195 meters.
A Recent Triumph
This past weekend, Athens hosted the 41st Authentic Marathon, and it was a truly inspiring event. Charalampos Pitsoulis emerged victorious, covering the historic 42.195-meter course in 2 hours, 18 minutes, and 56 seconds. Immediately after crossing the finish line, the Greek runner was embraced by his wife and child. Stamatina Noula was the first woman to finish the challenging race, completing it in 2 hours, 40 minutes, and 19 seconds. She was followed by Gloria Privilegio (2:41:58) and Panagiota Vlachaki (2:47:24).
