The marathon, the athletics showpiece event

Some say the distance queen of athletics are the 1500 meters. Others, that 100 meters is the most exciting in this sport. But that takes the cake just as long as the Olympics is the marathon.

The last day of the Games in athletics, sport king of the appointment, only one test: the men's marathon. 42 kilometers and 195 meters in which athletes try to emulate that Greek soldier, who as the story goes, died at that distance.

There are really two versions for the origin of the Marathon, to each more interesting. The first one begins with the battle of Marathon, a battle that defined the outcome of the Medical War, in 490 BC, in Greece against Persia. The latter had announced that in case of victory would go to Athens to plunder the city, raping women and children slaughtered. Greece won the battle but it cost more than expected and feared that women commit suicide in Athens, which sent a young man named Miltiades to give the good news. The soldier ran about 35 miles an infernal pace and died after giving the message of victory to the Athenians.

The other version is more crazy. According to Herodotus, Phillípedes was sent to Sparta to ask for military support against the Persian invasion. The guy ran 240 kilometers in two days from Athens to Sparta. With which you stay?

Thereafter, in 1896 he ran the marathon at the Athens Olympics, but it was in 1908 when it established the official distance of 42,195 meters as the queen had a craving they finished in front of the presidential box. The first modern marathon winner was Spiridon Louis, a shepherd who took almost forced by the Greek army.

The world record is held Haile Gebrselassie, Ethiopian, in 2:04:26. Hopefully not happen in Beijing as in Athens, when the Brazilian was leading was assaulted by a spontaneous and ultimately finished third.

Source: Wikipedia

Image: ForoAtletismo