Marathon messenger who ran from Athens to Sparta asking for help, and then ran back, a distance of over each way. In some Herodotus manuscripts, the name of the runner between Athens and Sparta is given as Philippides. Herodotus makes no mention of a messenger sent from Marathon to Athens, and relates that the main part of the Athenian army, having fought and won the grueling battle, and fearing a naval raid by the Persian fleet against an undefended Athens, marched quickly back from the battle to Athens, arriving the same day. In 1879, Robert Browning wrote the poem "Pheidippides". Browning's
Nice Half Marathon Nice Half Marathon The Nice Half Marathon () is an annual road running competition over the half marathon distance (21.1 km) held in April in the city of Nice, France. It is organised by the Azur Sport Organisation, who hold several races in the region, including the annual French Riviera Marathon. The men's course record is held by Bernard Kiprop Koech of Kenya, who at 59:57 minutes is the only man to win the race in under an hour. The women's record of 1:08:42 dates back to 2003, when Olympic medallist Isabella Ochichi won the race. Launched in 1992, the