The annual Athens Classic Marathon was held today in Athens and more than 11,000 runners from nearly 100 countries competed in the race.

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 toAthens to announce the Greeks’ victory over thePersians.^[3] The provenance of the competitive race is traced back to the Marathon race at the 1896 Olympics.

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 to finish up at the Panathinaiko Stadium (read our related post.

In 1982, the organisers dedicated the race to Grigoris Lambrakis, an athlete and Member of the Greek Parliament, whose murder in the 1960s has become an inspirational cause for advocates of human rights.