Marathon 101 - Basics of the Olympic Sport

Marathons 101

By Compete-At: Online Registration Solutions & Event Planning Software for Races

Marathons: The Basics
• Marathon: A long-distance foot race
that is 26.2 miles (42.195 kilometers)
• The race is named after the Greek
soldier Pheidippides
• The marathon became standardized
as an Olympic event in 1921
• Large marathons can have tens of
thousands of participants
• More than 800 marathons are
organized throughout the year


History of the Marathon
• According to legend, Pheidippides
was a Greek messenger who was
sent from the town of Marathon to
Athens to announce that the
Persians had been defeated
• The ﬁrst Olympic marathon took
place in 1896
• The women’s marathon was
introduced to the Olympics in 1984
• It has been a tradition in the
modern Olympics for the last event
to be the running of the marathon


Training for a Marathon
• Most running coaches believe that
the most important part of training is
the long run
• Many runners try to reach 20 miles
as their long run
• 40 miles a week is an average
distance for runners that are training
• Most training programs last around
ﬁve to six months
• Consult your health professional
regularly during your training


Tips for Participating in a Marathon
• Most likely you’re not going to win :-(
So start slow and take it easy, set your own
personal goal and strive to reach your goal.

• Don’t drink to much during the race and take
plenty of nutrients.

• Write something unique on your shirt or wear
something unique. This will allow spectators to
cheer for you – “Run Steve, Run!”

• Bring warm clothes and a throwaway blanket to
the start. Sometimes you will wait hours and
hours and you shouldn’t start a race stiff.

• Take salt tablets during the race to keep your
sodium levels up.

• For more tips, Google “Jonathan Roche 10 Tips
for running a marathon”


Famous Marathons
• More than 800 marathons are
organized around the world
• Five of the largest marathons:
Boston, New York City, Chicago,
London, and Berlin make up the
biannual World Marathon Majors
• Marathons also occur at the
North Pole, on the Great Wall of
China, and in Greenland


World Records
• World records for marathons were not
recognized until 2004
• Before world records were recognized, the
best times were referred to as “world best”
• The world record for men was set in Berlin
by Haile Gebrselassie of Ethiopia with a
time of 2 hours 3 minutes and 59 seconds
• The world record for women was set in
London by Paula Radcliffe of Great Britain
with a time of 2 hours 15 minutes and 25
seconds


Online Registration for Races
• With the high number of
participants in marathons, online
registration is a must to manage
registrants for any size race

• Compete-At provides a tailored,
turn-key platform for marathon
organizers to set up their events
online: http://www.compete-
at.com/running/index.html


Content Credits
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marathon

Image Credits
http://www.flickr.com/photos/polarmate/196430219/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/hojusaram/2339926870/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/pkeleher/2385765806/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/athomeinscottsdale/3108205128/


Image Credits
http://www.flickr.com/photos/fdevillamil/2305163356/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/fdevillamil/2305162176/in/
set-72157604024065288/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/michalo/283653390/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Pheidippidespic1.jpg

http://www.flickr.com/photos/infomatique/1800236987/

By Compete-At: Online Registration Solutions & Event Planning Software for Curling

Marathon 101 - Basics of the Olympic Sport

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Marathon 101 - Basics of the Olympic Sport