Greater Manchester Marathon Head pub in Warburton, although at this point the run was only. The first marathon to be run over 26 miles and 385 yards was the race in 1909, it started in Sandbach and finished at the Fallowfield Stadium in Manchester. A marathon has been run along various routes in the Manchester area intermittently throughout the years with various start and finish points. Until 2012, the last marathon to be held in the city was in 2002, with the 10 km Great Manchester Run superseding it as the major running event in Manchester. The current course finishes at Old Trafford
Marathon from the start at Windsor Castle to the royal entrance to the White City Stadium, followed by a lap (586 yards 2 feet; 536 m) of the track, finishing in front of the Royal Box. The course was later altered to use a different entrance to the stadium, followed by a partial lap of 385 yards to the same finish. The modern standard distance for the marathon was set by the International Amateur Athletic Federation (IAAF) in May 1921 directly from the length used at the 1908 Summer Olympics in London. An official IAAF marathon course is 42.195 km (42