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Event
Information:
The
Athens Classic Marathon is an annual
marathon road race held in Athens,
Greece, normally in early November.
The race usually attracts around
5000 competitors every year,
although the total reaches around
8000 when including the concurrent 5
and 10 kilometres road races and the
racewalking contest.
The
marathon course is based on the myth
from which the race gained its name:
Pheidippides, a messenger in Ancient
Greece, ran from the Battle of
Marathon to Athens to announce the
Greeks' victory over the Persians.
The provenance of the competitive
race is traced back to the Marathon
race at the 1896 Olympics. The
Athens Classic Marathon began in
1972 as a joint venture between the
Greek tourist board and athletics
association. The race came under the
auspices of the current organisers
and SEGAS in 1983 and has since
become a major race, being awarded
Silver Label Road Race status by the
IAAF.
It is
perhaps one of the most difficult
major marathon races: the course is
uphill from the 10 km mark to the 31
km mark – the toughest uphill climb
of any major marathon. The course
begins in the town of Marathon,
where it passes the tomb of the
Athenian soldiers, and it traces a
path near the coast through Nea
Makri. Following the steep rise, the
course goes lightly downhill towards
the city of Athens. It passes a
statue of a runner (Ο Δρομέας) in
the city centre before finishing up
at the Panathinaiko Stadium; a site
for athletics competitions in
ancient times and the finishing
point for both the 1896 and 2004
Olympic marathons.
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