Greek Immigration Life: The world's "most authentic" marathon event—the Athens Marathon will commence on November 8, attracting over 40,000 athletes and enthusiasts from around the globe, including more than 500 Chinese participants, setting a record for the highest number of Chinese competitors in history.
This year's Athens Marathon was won by Greek athlete Xristoforos Merousis with a time of 2 hours, 21 minutes, and 22 seconds in the men's category.
Running is a sport that requires no external assistance, unlike basketball, which requires synergy between person and ball, F1 racing, which requires synergy between person and car, golf, which requires synergy between person and club, and badminton and table tennis, which require synergy between person and racket. Running is the simplest and most straightforward sport that can be done anytime and anywhere. Using one's legs as leverage to shake the world may be why more and more people love marathons.
The marathon is a sport inspired by a legendary story, which dates back to a battle that occurred on September 12, 490 BC.
This battle was fought between the Persians and the Athenians near the coast of Marathon, not far from Athens, known as the Greco-Persian Wars, where the Athenians ultimately emerged victorious. To inform the people of his hometown about the victory, commander Miltiades sent a soldier named Pheidippides back to deliver the news.
Pheidippides was a famous "swift runner"; in his eagerness to deliver the good news to his fellow countrymen, he ran quickly. When he reached Athens, he was out of breath and excitedly shouted, "Rejoice, Athenians, we... have won!" After saying this, he collapsed and died. To commemorate this event, the marathon race was established at the first modern Olympic Games held in 1896, with the distance of 42.193 kilometers representing the distance Pheidippides ran to deliver the news. Marathon was originally a place name located 30 kilometers northeast of Athens.
As history has developed to today, the marathon is no longer just a tribute to the ancient battlefield and the news of victory delivered by Pheidippides, nor is it solely a sport for professional athletes. It has increasingly become a symbolic sport representing people's pursuit of health, friendship, and peace.
There is no need to select a stadium or participate in professional training; as long as one wishes to compete, simply lift one's feet and the race begins. The openness of the venue and the inclusiveness towards participants may be the main reasons why fitness running and marathons are becoming increasingly popular. From foreign cities like London, Paris, Tokyo, and New York to Chinese cities like Beijing, Shenzhen, Zhuhai, and Chongqing... running figures can be seen everywhere around the world. The marathon no longer represents traditional sports training, rankings, and medals, but rather relaxation, enjoyment of themes, appreciation of urban beauty, and experiencing cultural atmosphere.