This is why a marathon is exactly 26.2 miles🏃‍♂️💨

The legend of Pheidippides dashing from Marathon to Athens, proclaiming victory, and then collapsing? Not quite the real story! 😲

Some say the true Pheidippides was a Greek courier who ran an epic 150 miles from Athens to Sparta to rally troops before the battle. The dramatic tale of a lone runner dying after delivering victory news? That only showed up in records centuries later.

So, how’d we end up with the modern marathon?

In 1896, the first Olympic marathon was set at about 25 miles (40km), inspired by the Marathon-to-Athens route, thanks to a French historian’s idea. But in 1908, the London Olympics stretched it to 26.2 miles so the British royals could start the race at Windsor Castle and watch the finish from their fancy royal box.

That random distance became the marathon standard we know today! 🏃‍♂️🔥