But what about the Marathon run itself?The story goes that a single soldier Pheidippides ran back from the battlefield at Marathon to Athens (a distance of about 42 km – the current marathon distance) to announce the Athenian victory before dropping dead.When the first modern Olympics was held in Athens in 1896, it was suggested to the President of the games, Pierre de Coubertin, that the ‘Marathon’ would make a good Olympic event.The first winner was a Greek (Spyros Louis), and since then, marathons have taken place all over the world (although the exact distance of 42.195km wasn’t fixed until 1908 when the Olympics came to London).The problem is that it’s very hard to find any trace of the Pheidippides story in the contemporary ancient sources. The marathon race was created in 1896 to honor the legendary run of Greek messenger Pheidippides from Marathon to Athens. Topics Please enter your number below.The official website for BBC History Magazine, BBC History Revealed and BBC World Histories MagazineHere in Britain, London is limbering up for its big marathon race on April 25th. He was sent to enlist the help of the Spartans before the battle and he ran to Sparta, first stopping at Athens, a total distance of 240 km (a feat repeated by an athlete in 1983 CE). According to Greek mythology, Pheidippides was the first Marathon runner. After Theseus united the 12 independent districts of Attica into one state, the name of Tetrapolis gradually fell into disuse; and the four places of which it consisted became Attic demi, Marathon, Tricorythus, and Oenoë belonging to the tribe Few places have obtained such celebrity in the history of the world as Marathon, on account of the victory which the Athenians here gained over the Although the name Marathon had a positive resonance in Europe in the nineteenth century, for some time that was sullied by the In the 19th century and beginning of twentieth century the village was inhabited by an The beach of Schinias is located southeast of the town. Our best wishes for a productive day. Wallechinsky, David and Jaime Loucky (2008). Period 1,591), Kato Souli (2,142), Vranas (1,082), Avra (191), Vothon (177), Ano Souli (232), and Schinias (264). The story that everyone is familiar with is that of Pheidippides running from the battlefield of Marathon to Athens to announce Greek victory, a distance of about 25 miles. The story goes that a single soldier Pheidippides ran back from the battlefield at Marathon to Athens (a distance of about 42 km – the current marathon distance) to announce the Athenian victory before dropping dead. In myth, it was on the plain of Marathon that Theseus caught the Lapith Peirithous trying to steal his cattle. One final legend of Marathon and one which has carried its name up to the present day is Herodotus’ account of a long-distance messenger (hēmerodromos) named Phidippides. The name "Marathon" (Μαραθών) comes from the herb fennel, called marathon (μάραθον) or marathos (μάραθος) in Ancient Greek, so Marathon literally means "a place full of fennels". Pheidippides or Philippides (Φιλιππίδης) is the central figure in the story that inspired a modern sporting event, the marathon race. Instead, Eurystheus let it loose, which reached Marathon and acquired the name Marathonian Bull. By entering your details, you are agreeing to HistoryExtra Or is it?To be sure, the battle of Marathon, the battle in which a small Athenian force, without Spartan help, managed to rout the massive invading armies of Persia, happened in 490 BC (on either 12th August or September depending on how you interpret the ancient calendars).To be sure, it was an Athenian victory that was celebrated time and time again in ancient Greece and became part of Athens’ civic identity. You will shortly receive a receipt for your purchase via email. Magazines The Myth and First Marathon Marathon. Herodotus, who wrote his history of the Persian wars just 70 years after the battle, has Pheidippides running from Marathon to Sparta and back (a much longer distance of 150 miles each way) to ask for Spartan help before the battle started.But he then says that, after the battle, all the Athenian troops marched quickly back to Athens to defend the city in case the Persians tried to land again and attack from the south.We have to wait until the 1st century BC before we hear about the journey from Marathon to Athens being made by a single runner and until 180 AD, in the writings of Lucian, for it to be crystallized into the story we know today.So marathon runners everywhere – just be thankful the modern Marathon doesn’t cover the distance Pheidippides may originally have run and good luck! If you subscribe to BBC History Magazine Print or Digital Editions then you can unlock 10 years’ worth of archived history material fully searchable by Topic, Location, Period and Person. But what about the Marathon run itself?