Ask the Chatbot Games & Quizzes History & Society Science & Tech Biographies Animals & Nature Geography & Travel Arts & Culture ProCon Money Videos
marathon
Table of Contents
Introduction References & Edit History Related Topics
Images & Videos
Eliud Kipchoge: 2022 Berlin Marathon
The miles-long history of the marathon
Boston Marathon Marathon runner Abebe Bikila Radcliffe, Paula
What was the Battle of Marathon?
Quizzes
Assorted sports balls including a basketball, football, soccer ball, tennis ball, baseball and others.
American Sports Nicknames
Read Next
Car with a pickle design in the Zagreb Red Bull Soapbox Race, Zagreb, Croatia, September 14, 2019. (games, races, sports)
10 Unusual Sports
Sailboats in Boston Harbor in front of the financial district of Boston, Massachusetts, USA
Boston: 10 Claims to Fame
Discover
Easter Procession of Maria Santisima del Sacromonte in Granada, Spain. This statue is known as Virgen de los Gitanos or The Virgin of the Gypsies.
What is Holy Week?
Lusitania sinking, illustration from The War of the Nations (New York), December 31, 1919. World War I, WWI. This image is one of three on the page. (See source file for the other two.)
7 of the World’s Deadliest Shipwrecks
July, 2006, Launch of Space Shuttle Discovery STS-121. See attached for full caption information.
Will Light-Speed Space Travel Ever Be Possible?
Two chicks near an egg with a white background (poultry, chick, chickens, birds).
What Do Eggs Have to Do with Easter?
Fish. Lionfish. Lion-fish. Turkey fish. Fire-fish. Red lionfish. Pterois volitans. Venomous fin spines. Coral reefs. Underwater. Ocean. Red lionfish swims by seaweed.
10 of the World’s Most Dangerous Fish
Groups of depositors in front of the closed American Union Bank, New York City. April 26, 1932. Great Depression run on bank crowd
Causes of the Great Depression
Rural Irish landscape, Sligo, Ireland.
Why Is Ireland Two Countries?

marathon: Related Content

verifiedCite
While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions.
Select Citation Style
Share
Share to social media
URL
https://www.britannica.com/facts/marathon-race
Written and fact-checked by
The Information Architects of Encyclopaedia Britannica

The Information Architects maintain a master list of the topics included in the corpus of  Encyclopædia Britannica, and create and manage the relationships between them.
The Information Architects of Encyclopaedia Britannica

News •

Stanchart Singapore Marathon’s half-marathon, marathon to run on separate days • Apr. 16, 2025, 7:39 AM ET (Straits Times)
Jersey City Marathon 2025 route map, road closures and results • Apr. 13, 2025, 7:39 AM ET (CBS)
Defibrillators and CPR cut marathon cardiac deaths in half, study shows • Apr. 1, 2025, 4:57 AM ET (News-Medical)
Heart attack deaths during marathons decline significantly, study reveals • Mar. 30, 2025, 10:57 PM ET (News-Medical)

Photos and Videos

Eliud Kipchoge: 2022 Berlin Marathon
Boston Marathon
Marathon runner Abebe Bikila
Radcliffe, Paula
The miles-long history of the marathon
What was the Battle of Marathon?
See All Videos and Images →

Related Topics and References

Topics

Key People

Radcliffe, Paula
Paula Radcliffe
British distance runner
Robert Kipkoech Cheruiyot
Kenyan runner
Joan Benoit Samuelson
Joan Benoit Samuelson
American runner
Eliud Kipchoge: 2022 Berlin Marathon
Eliud Kipchoge
Kenyan distance runner
Emil Zátopek
Emil Zátopek
Czech runner
Grete Waitz
Norwegian athlete
Hannes Kolehmainen
Finnish athlete
Spyridon Louis
Greek marathon runner
Marathon runner Abebe Bikila
Abebe Bikila
Ethiopian athlete
Shorter, Frank
Frank Shorter
American athlete
Waldemar Cierpinski
East German athlete

Related Quizzes and Features

Quiz
Assorted sports balls including a basketball, football, soccer ball, tennis ball, baseball and others.
American Sports Nicknames
List
Car with a pickle design in the Zagreb Red Bull Soapbox Race, Zagreb, Croatia, September 14, 2019. (games, races, sports)
10 Unusual Sports