Marathon

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A marathon is a long distance running event where an athlete must run 26 miles and 385 yards. There are 1000's of marathons held in the world each year. It is a very difficult event and runners should practice running many miles before they compete.

[change] History

In 390 B.C. there was an important battle in Greece. There was an army from Persia that came to fight the army from Athens. The battle was held at a place called Marathon. The army from Athens was not expected to win, but they did. After the victory, they sent their best runner, a man named Pheidippides back to Athens to tell everyone the good news. He ran about 25 miles back to town.

In 1896 the first modern Olympics was held. They had a race called the Marathon. It was about 25 miles. Today the race is set at 26 miles and 385 yards. That is about 26.2 miles.