Marathons at the Olympics Olympics marked the introduction of the now standard distance of 26 miles, 385 yards (42.195 km). However, it was not until the 1924 Paris Olympics that this distance became the standard at the Olympics. The Olympic marathon proved immediately popular in the Western world and quickly spawned numerous long-running annual races, including the Boston Marathon in 1897, the Tour de Paris Marathon in 1902, the Yonkers Marathon in 1907, and the London Polytechnic Marathon in 1909. Such marathons played a key role in the expansion of the road running movement internationally over the course of the 20th century. It has
How Many Miles to Babylon? (novel) starring Daniel Day-Lewis as Alec and Christopher Fairbank as Jerry. In 2005 the actor and director Alan Stanford adapted the novel for stage and it was produced by Second Age Theatre Company and directed by David Parnell. The play has been performed several times subsequently. The book featured as the "Book at Bedtime" on BBC Radio 4 in April 2013. "In the Army :" How Many Miles to Babylon? (novel) How Many Miles to Babylon? is a novel by Irish writer Jennifer Johnston, first published in 1974. The novel explores the relationship of two men, an Anglo-Irish aristocrat, Alexander Moore,