Fidippid

As the best runner, shortly before the battle, Fidippid was sent to Sparta with a request to send the Spartan army to help in case of defeat. Having run out in the morning, he defeated 1240 stadia (238 km) on the mountain roads in less than a day, reaching the goal “early at the dawn of the next day,” says historian Herodotus (c. 484 BC - c. 425 BC . ). Then, having not received an intelligible answer ^[1] , he immediately returned by running. It became clear to the Greeks that there would be no help and it was impossible to lose the battle.

Not having enough time to rest, Fidippid, like all men (at that time the Greeks fought in the ranks until the age of 60), took part in a fierce 6-hour battle with a 10-fold superior enemy and, immediately after the victory, he was wounded and the exhausted fled to Athens, where women and children awaited with fear the decision of their fate.

The Greeks considered the right to bring the news of victory an honorary award worthy of heroes, and the courageous Fidippid deservedly demanded this right. Several runners carried the message to Athens, but not accustomed to losing Phidippidus and at that time did his best to be the first. And he succeeded. According to legend, when he reached Athens without stopping, he managed to shout “Rejoice, Athenians, we have won!” ( Greek Νενικήκαμεν ) and fell dead.

Although a messenger is known by the name of Phidippides, Herodotus and Plutarch called the hero Philipides.

Sport

Marathon

Feedippid’s feat seemed absolutely fantastic for the first amateur athletes ^{[2] of} our time. When the first modern Olympic Games were held in Athens in 1896 , at the suggestion of the French philologist Michel Breal, the first sports race along the legendary route between the Marathon and Athens (40 km) was organized in honor of the great hero. During the London Olympics, the distance was slightly increased to 42 km 195 m, so that the finish was near the Royal Palace.

Spartathlon

Based on the legend of Fidippida, five British Air Force officers, led by John Foden, went to Greece in 1982 with an official expedition to check whether it was possible to overcome about 250 kilometers in a day and a half ^[3] . Three runners successfully completed the distance: John Foden (37:37), John Soltens (34:30) and John McCarthy (39:00) ^[4] . Since 1983, the international Spartatlon race has been held annually at the end of September at a distance of 246 kilometers.

Track records

(m)   Janis Kuros , 20: 25.00 (1984);
(g)   25: 07.12 (2015)

Culture

• In the film The ( La battaglia di Maratona , Italy, 1959), Steve Reeves played the role of Fidippida (in the film named Philipid ).
• In the film The History of the Marathon: Journey of the Hero (1991), which tells the story of the marathon, the role of Fidippida was played by Janis Kuros .

• Herodotus (c. 484 B.C. - c. 425 B.C. ) was born a few years after the Battle of Marathon and described it in 30 - 40 years.

• Marathon distance
• Battle of the Marathon
• Marathon (city)
• Spartathlon

• Fidippid // Modern reference dictionary: Antique world. Comp. M.I. Umnov. - M.: Olympus, AST, 2000.
• Fidippid (inaccessible link) // Cyril and Methodius Sports Encyclopedia.
• Fidippida's marathon run.
• The main thing is to live to the finish: scientists found out why the first marathon runner died // Komsomolskaya Pravda. August 2, 2004.