Marathon Marathon The marathon is a long-distance race, completed by running, walking, or a run/walk strategy. There are also wheelchair divisions. The marathon has an official distance of 42.195 kilometres (26.219 miles; 26 miles 385 yards), usually run as a road race. The event was instituted in commemoration of the fabled run of the Greek soldier Pheidippides, a messenger from the Battle of Marathon to Athens, who reported the victory. The marathon was one of the original modern Olympic events in 1896, though the distance did not become standardized until 1921. More than 800 marathons are held throughout the world each
Istanbul Half Marathon Istanbul Half Marathon The Istanbul Half Marathon () is an annual road running event over the half marathon distance (21.1 km) that takes place on the streets of Istanbul, Turkey in April. The event is sponsored by Vodafone. It was promoted to the IAAF Gold Label status for 2017. The event was established in 1987 under the name "Haliç Yarı Maratonu" ("Golden Horn Half Marathon"), and continued to run until 1993. After a break of 17 years, it revived in 2010 under the name "8th International Golden Horn Half Marathon" with participation of around 1,500 athletes from 22 nations. The