Athletics at the 1896 Summer Olympics – Men's marathon Athletics at the 1896 Summer Olympics – Men's marathon The men's marathon event was a special race invented as part of the Athletics at the 1896 Summer Olympics programme. Michel Bréal originated the idea of a race from the city of Marathon to Athens, taking inspiration from the legend of Pheidippides. The first such marathon race was a Greek national competition that served as a qualifier for the Olympic marathon, won by Charilaos Vasilakos. The length of the marathon in 1896 was approximately 40 km (25 mi). Twenty-five athletes traveled to Marathon for the race from there to Athens, though
Tokyo International Women's Marathon Tokyo International Women's Marathon The Tokyo International Women's Marathon was a marathon for female elite runners held in Tokyo from 1979 until 2008 in November. It was first held in November 1979, and this race was the first women's marathon officially sanctioned by the International Amateur Athletic Federation (IAAF). After Adriaan Paulen, the IAAF president, watched this event, he announced his support for the women's Marathon to be included in the Olympic Games. After the 30th edition the organisers (Japan Association of Athletics Federations (JAAF), Asahi Shimbun and TV Asahi) discontinued the race, because the new Tokyo Marathon held since