History of the Marathon and the World Marathon Majors

Introduction

The marathon is the longest of the standard Olympic running distances and one of the most culturally significant individual sporting events in the world. The standard marathon distance of 42.195 kilometers (26.2 miles) has been contested by professional and amateur runners since the 1896 Athens Olympic Games, when the inaugural modern Olympic marathon was won by the Greek shepherd Spyridon Louis. The distance has been standardized at exactly 42.195 kilometers since 1921, the standardization having emerged from the 1908 London Olympic marathon course that had been measured at 26 miles and 385 yards.

The World Marathon Majors (WMM) is the principal international championship structure for elite professional marathon running. The series consists of six major annual marathons: the Boston Marathon (founded 1897, contested every April), the New York City Marathon (founded 1970, contested every November), the Chicago Marathon (founded 1977, contested every October), the Berlin Marathon (founded 1974, contested every September), the London Marathon (founded 1981, contested every April), and the Tokyo Marathon (founded 2007, contested every March). The series was established in 2006 with the original five majors and expanded to include Tokyo in 2013. The various WMM races collectively attract more than 250,000 elite and amateur runners each year, with the various race fields including Olympic and World Championships medalists, world record holders, and various aspiring elite runners.

This article surveys the full history of the marathon from the legendary 490 BCE run by the Athenian messenger Pheidippides through the 1896 Athens Olympic inaugural modern marathon, the 1908 London standardization of the 26.2-mile distance, the various early twentieth-century marathon traditions, the founding of the six World Marathon Majors and their gradual establishment as the elite marathon championship structure, the substantial East African dominance of marathon running through the modern era, the brilliant Eliud Kipchoge career and his historic 2019 sub-two-hour run in Vienna (and his official world record progression), the parallel development of women's marathon running, the recent women's world records by Brigid Kosgei and Tigist Assefa, the substantial wheelchair marathon competition, and the modern economics and broader cultural significance of marathon running.

Ancient Origins and Modern Revival

The marathon takes its name from the Battle of Marathon, fought in 490 BCE between Greek forces (primarily Athenian, with substantial Plataean assistance) and a Persian invasion army under King Darius I. According to the legendary account, the Athenian messenger Pheidippides (sometimes called Philippides in various sources) ran from the Marathon battlefield to Athens (approximately 40 kilometers) to announce the Greek victory, then collapsed and died upon delivering the message. The actual historical accuracy of this account has been substantially disputed by classical historians, with various accounts indicating that Pheidippides had actually run from Athens to Sparta (approximately 246 kilometers) to request Spartan military assistance before the battle.

The modern marathon was created for the 1896 Athens Olympic Games as a deliberate commemoration of the Pheidippides legend. The French scholar Michel Bréal proposed the marathon race to Pierre de Coubertin, the founder of the modern Olympics, as a deliberate connection between the modern Games and ancient Greek tradition. The proposed marathon would follow the historical route from Marathon to Athens, approximately 40 kilometers in distance. The proposal was accepted by the International Olympic Committee, and the 1896 marathon was contested over the historical route on April 10, 1896.