Athens Classic Marathon Athens Classic Marathon The Athens Classic (authentic) Marathon is an annual marathon road race held in Athens, Greece, normally in early November. The race attracted 43,000 competitors in 2015 of which 16,000 were for the 42.195 km course, both numbers being an all-time record for the event. The rest of the runners competed in the concurrent 5 and 10 kilometres road races and the racewalking contest. The marathon course is based on the legend from which the race gained its name: Pheidippides, a messenger in Ancient Greece, ran from the Battle of Marathon to Athens to announce the Greeks' victory
Paris Marathon medal to all runners who finished the race in less than 4 hours. The distance of 40 km was chosen as it was the distance separating Marathon from Athens. The current distance of the race is 42.195 km, which the IAAF established in 1921 as the standard length of a marathon, following the 1908 Olympic race in London. This first race was won by Len Hurst from England who crossed the finishing line in 2 hours, 31 minutes and 30 seconds. His prize money was 200 francs. Although the International Association of Athletics Federations credits Violet Piercy as the first