White City, London paving outside the building. The Marathon from these London Olympics played an important part in the development of the modern marathon race. In the early years of competitive international sport, the long distance marathon race did not have a standard set distance. The distance run at the first seven Olympics from 1896 to 1920 varied between 40km and 42.75 km. The starting point of the race at the 1908 Olympics was at Windsor Castle creating a distance of 26 miles 385 yards (42.195 km) to the finishing line at White City stadium. In 1921 this was adopted as the standard
Philadelphia Marathon 5 miles) companion race to the Philadelphia Marathon. This race follows a shorter loop of the marathon, starting off on the expansive Benjamin Franklin Parkway before taking a turn on the scenic banks of the Schuylkill River and Martin Luther King Drive. Each runner receives a T-shirt, a finisher medal and a finisher certificate (available online after the race). The Philadelphia Marathon, who collaborated with Green Mountain Energy partnered with the Mayor’s Office of Sustainability and the Mayor’s Office of Civic Engagement to turn the race into an eco-friendly sporting event. In 2007, the Marathon’s eco-friendly events began with recycling