Sketch of my chapters

Marathon Origins
Origin
Modern Olympics Marathon
Marathons around the world and the 6 mayors
Marathons around the world
The 6 mayors
Marathon Training
Training
Diet and food
Health Risks
Marathon Stories (In this chapter Ill talk about some stories like, how the first woman
ran a marathon, The Father and son at the Barcelona marathon, etc.)
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Marathon Origins
The name Marathon comes from the legend of Pheidippides, a Greek messenger. The
legend says the he was sent form the battlefield of Marathon to Athens to announce that they
have defeat the Prussians in the Battle of Marathon.
Pheidippides had fought in the battle which took place somewhere between August and
September of 490 BC.
It is said that he ran the entire distance form Marathon to Athens without stopping, he busted
into the assembly exclaiming nenikekamen that means we have won before collapsing
and dying in the middle of the assembly while everybody celebrated their victory over the
Prussians.
When the modern Olympic Games were created in 1896 in Greece, the legend of
Pheidippides was revived by a 24.85 mile (40,000 meters) run from Marathon Bridge to
Olympic stadium in Athens.
The first organized marathon on April 10, 1896 was really important to all Greeks. Greece
was hosting those first modern Olympic Games. The Greeks had yet to win a medal, and had
one final chance to bring glory to their nation.
Twenty-five runners started on Marathon Bridge. The starter said a few words and fired the
gun, and the race was on.
"The excitement of the crowd waiting at the finish line at the newly constructed replica of
Athens' ancient stadium was beyond description" writes the Greek historian Quercetani.
Spiridon Louis, a Greek postal worker finished the Marathon seven minutes ahead of
everybody. His time was 2 hours, 58 minutes, 50 seconds for the 40 kilometre distance. When
it was all over nine runners finished, 8 of them Greeks. The host nation was very happy and
grateful, and the marathon was born.

At the 1908 Olympic Games in London, the marathon distance was changed to 26.2 miles to
cover the ground from Windsor Castle to White City stadium, with the 2.2 miles added on so
the race could finish in front of royal family's viewing box.
This added two miles to the race and is the origin of the Marathon tradition of shouting "God
save the Queen!" (Or other words relating to the Queen) as mile post 24 is passed.
After 16 years of extremely heated discussion, this 26.2 mile distance was established at the
1924 Olympics in Paris as the official marathon distance.
Today, marathons have become a running tradition throughout the world. Yet the annual
Marathon at Athens, where it all began. In 1996, the 100th anniversary of the modern Athens
Marathon, more than 3,000 runners from every part of the world gathered to run in the
footsteps of Pheidippides.
The length of an Olympic marathon was not fixed at first, but the marathon races in the first
few Olympic Games were about 40 kilometres (25 mi), roughly the distance from Marathon
City to Athens.
The IOC (International Olympic Committee) agreed in 1907 that the distance for the 1908
London Olympic marathon would be about 25 miles or 40 kilometres.
The organisers decided on a course of 26 miles from the start at Windsor Castle to the royal
entrance to the White City Stadium, they added 536 m so that the race could finishing in front
of the Royal Box.
The modern 42.195 km standard distance for the marathon was set by the International
Amateur Athletic Federation (IAAF) in May 1921, they took the idea from the length used at
the 1908 Summer Olympics in London.
An official IAAF marathon course has to 42.195 km plus or minus 42 m.
Course officials add a short amount of distance to each kilometre to reduce the risk of a
measuring error producing a length below the established.
For events controlled by IAAF rules, it is mandatory that the route must be marked so that all
runners can see the distance covered in kilometres. The rules do not say anything about the
use of miles.
The IAAF will only recognise world records that are established at events that are run under
IAAF rules.