Marathon

Marathon, village and plain northeast of Athens, Greece, site of an Athenian victory (490 B.C.) over the Persians. The runner Pheidippides carried a report of the victory to Athens, after which he collapsed and died. The modern Olympic Games (1896) standardized the marathon race at 26 mi, 385 yd (42.2 km) in 1908. Boston and New York City each hold annual marathons, attracting thousands of runners.

See also: Greece.