How long is the womens marathon

The organisers of the first modern Olympic Games in Athens in devised the marathon race over 40km to celebrate the achievements of Ancient Greece. The distance was later extended to the imperial measurement of 26 miles at the Olympic Games in London, and increased another yards when the starting line was pulled back so it could be seen by the children in the Royal Nursery at Windsor and still finish in front of Queen Alexandra at the White City Stadium in west London.

This distance was standardised at 26 miles yards One of the greatest marathon runners of all time was Abebe Bikila of Ethiopia, who became the first black African to win Olympic gold by winning the marathon in a world record time at the Rome Games. Four years later he became the first man in history to successfully defend the title.

All Lifestyle Performance Culture. While traditionally the finish line of a big road race is the stadium, some recent world championships have seen the race conclude in the city center as well. The name Marathon comes from the legend of Philippides. Pheidippides, a Greek soldier, ran 26 miles from the battlefield of Marathon to Athens to report the defeat of the Persians.

After completing his task, he collapsed and died from fatigue after running kilometers back from Sparta the day before. The 40 km marathon was created in by the organizers of the first modern Olympic Games, which were held in Athens.

In the early editions, the race-course ranged from 25 to 26 miles 40 to 42 kilometers , depending on the distance between two locations that the organizers deemed appropriate. Find the best online language tutors ,and learn to speak confidently. Vintage Football Store. Official retro t-shirts English football clubs , be inspired by the most important moments of the premier. How far is it in miles? Gidget Alikpala. Update: 5 August EDT. Central Press Getty Images.

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