Olympic Athletics Marathon

The Olympic Athletics Marathon has a rich history, marked by iconic moments and enduring spirit. The first Olympic Marathon took place in Athens in 1896. Spiridon Louis of Greece emerged as the victor, forever associating the Marathon with the legendary run from the Battle of Marathon.

The marathon distance was standardized to 42.195 kilometres in the 1900 Paris Olympics. World Wars I and II led to interruptions in the Games scheduled for 1916, 1940, and 1944. Ethiopian runner Abebe Bikila made history at the 1960 Rome Olympics, winning the marathon barefoot. The women's marathon debuted in Los Angeles in 1984, with Joan Benoit securing the historic gold.

In recent years, Eliud Kipchoge of Kenya has been a dominant force, winning gold at the 2016 Rio Olympics and successfully defending his title at the rescheduled Tokyo 2020 Olympics in 2021. The marathon continues to captivate athletes, showcasing physical endurance and mental fortitude on the grand Olympic stage. Each edition adds new chapters to its compelling narrative. The athlete with the most gold medals in the Olympic Athletics Marathon is Abebe Bikila of Ethiopia. Bikila achieved this remarkable feat by winning back-to-back gold medals in the Olympic Marathons. In Rome in 1960, he made history by running barefoot, and he followed it up with another gold in Tokyo in 1964, this time wearing shoes.

Scheduled from August 1 to 11, 2024, the Paris Summer Olympics athletics lineup spans 48 medal events across track and field, road running, and racewalking, with venues including Pont d'Iéna, Hôtel de Ville, Les Invalides, and Stade de France. Marking a historic first, an equal number of medal events for men and women will feature at these Games. Introducing the Marathon Race Walking Mixed Relay on a marathon course, this event replaces the men's 50-kilometer race walk, emphasizing gender equality.

Notably, the athletics program adopts a repechage-round format for individual track events (200 to 1500 meters) and hurdles (110m for men, 100m for women, and 400m for both), offering runners a second shot at reaching the semifinals, replacing the former fastest overall times qualification system.