Bids for the 2020 Summer Olympics Rome was nominated by the Italian National Olympic Committee on 19 May 2010. Italy's capital city was chosen over Venice as the country's bid for the 2020 Games. Rome previously hosted the Summer Olympics in 1960 and was chosen to host the 1908 Summer Olympics, but was relocated to London due to the 1906 eruption of Mount Vesuvius. It bid to host the 2004 Games but lost to Athens in the final round of voting. Rome hosted the 2009 World Aquatics Championships as well as the 1990 FIFA World Cup Final. Italy previously hosted the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin
Summer Olympic Games distance was chosen to ensure that the race finished in front of the box occupied by the British royal family. Thus the marathon had been for the first games in 1896, but was subsequently varied by up to due to local conditions such as street and stadium layout. At the six Olympic games between 1900 and 1920, the marathon was raced over six distances. At the end of the 1908 marathon the Italian runner Dorando Pietri was first to enter the stadium, but he was clearly in distress, and collapsed of exhaustion before he could complete the event. He was