In 490 BC C. took place in the areas of the town of Marathon a few miles from Athens. a battle that pitted one side the Persian king Darius I, who wanted to invade and conquer Athens for its participation in the Ionian Revolt on the other hand, the Athenians and their allies. According the Greek historian Herodotus, the soldier Pheidippides was sent to Sparta to ask for military assistance to repel the invading Persians, who were moving toward Marathon. According to the book of Herodotus, Pheidippides ran from Athens to Sparta in two days, covering 240 km. Yet another version that Pheidippides died from fatigue after having run about 40 km from Marathon to Athens to announce victory the Persian army.
Fortunately for today's brokers, the founders of the first Olympic Games took the second version and set the race distance at 42,195 km, although there is an annual race in honor of this epic called Spartathlon , that covers the distance from Athens to Sparta.
Links:
Spartathlon: Inspired by the legend of Pheidippides, is a marathon from Athens to Sparta which runs for 36 hours.
Sources: Wikipedia
0 comments:
Post a Comment