Leonard Hurst 200-franc prize in a winning time of 2:31:30; 27 minutes faster than the mark of 2:58:50 set by Spiridon Louis of Greece three months earlier at the first Olympic marathon in Athens, Greece on 10 April 1896. Set on courses shorter than the now-standardized distance of 42,195 km (26 miles 385 yards), the performances of Louis and Hurst were never officially recognised as world records in the marathon. 1897 contemporary sources report Hurst finishing second behind F. Champion in the second running of the event; and again finishing second in 1899 behind A. Charbonnel. In 1900 the race was run
2012 Olympic Marathon Course as 42.195 km and specifically state that the course must not be less than this distance. The rules further state that in Olympic competition the standard distance may not be exceeded by more than 0.1%. In order for a marathon performance to be ratified as a world record by the IAAF, the course must also meet other criteria that rule-out "artificially fast times" produced on courses aided by downhill slope or tailwind: the distance between start and end points when measured in a straight line should not exceed 50% of the length of the course (21.092 km in the case