Marathons Are 26.2 Miles Because of This Famous Moment in Olympic Games History

Running a marathon requires a tremendous level of determination. Conditioning the persistence to continually put one foot in front of the other no matter how tired you are, requires enormous mental mettle. Persevering, day in, day out, to train for a marathon and stick to a routine also requires tremendous discipline. Then there's the ability to keep oneself entertained while running such a prolonged distance is another factor.

And while completing one is surely a crazy feat, especially if you're aiming to beat a particular time, have you ever wondered why marathons are 26.2 miles?

The distance appears to be such an arbitrary number for the International Association of Athletics to decide upon. After all, how many people set their morning alarm clock to 6:13 a.m.?

However, the IAA established this as the official distance for marathons in 1921, and it's stuck for over a century. And the reason for doing so hearkens back to the 1908 Olympic games.

The modern Olympics made its return in 1896, largely due to the efforts of Baron Pierre de Coubertin. The educator became a founding member of the International Olympic Committee and hoped the games would bring about a greater level of global unity.

By having athletic representatives from different countries compete against each other in various events, Coubertin speculated folks from all across the world could engage in friendly competition. The games themselves paid homage to the ancient Greek activities meant to honor the lightning deity Zeus.

The events were divided into nine different categories: athletics, fencing, tennis, cycling road, shooting, weightlifting, cycling track, swimming, and wrestling.

As part of the athletics category, marathon running was featured and a distance of 25 miles (40 kilometers) was established.

Different event organizers at other games, however, established varying distances for the length of the Olympic marathon run. In the 1908 games, which were held in London, the marathon distance was 26 miles, which happened to be the length from Windsor Castle to White City Stadium.

However as the games went on, participants hit a snafu. The entrance of the stadium wouldn't be available for the runners to enter upon completion of the race. So, competitors needed to "enter from the opposite side and finish counterclockwise, right in front of King Edward VII's royal box and the British royal family."

One Italian competitor, Dorando Pietri ended up collapsing five times in the final lap of the race but picked himself up each time he did and continued to run. Officials interfered and assisted him in completing the race, despite him never asking for any help.

Pietri ended up finishing the race first despite succumbing to the sweltering summer heat on numerous occasions.

Consequently, he was disqualified from the race for the assistance he received. Queen Alexandra, however, who was supposedly struck by his determination and that he never called out for help, ended up personally awarding Pietri a specialized cup for the valiant showing.

The additional distance created by the entrance gate snafu ended up tacking on an extra .2 miles to the marathon's length. It could be that this story, born from a last-minute adjustment, is what ultimately influenced the IAA to set the official marathon distance at 26.2 miles.

Pietri's tale also resonates with that of the Athenian courier Pheidippides who was tasked with carrying an important message from the battle of Marathon.

In 490 BC, Persian forces under King Darius I arrived in Greece to retaliate against the nation for aiding in the Ionian Revolt.

Athens and Eretria provided soldiers to help Ionia "overthrow Persian rule." Darius wasn't too happy with that and wanted Greece to pay.

The Greeks were able to inflict significant casualties against the Persians and ultimately won the battle.

Pheidippides was given a message to bring back to Athens, informing them of the outcome of the battle. The message included the word "Nike" which translates to victory. The runner famously collapsed and died after completing his mission. As for the distance he covered, it's presumed to have been approximately 25 miles.

Prior to that, the courier was also essential in ensuring a Greek victory. He covered roughly 150 miles in 2 days, to inform the Spartans the Greeks would need their assistance in warding off the Persians.

Makes you appreciate text messaging a lot more now, doesn't it?