2012 Athens Marathon: Return to the source, by Pat Butcher, note by Larry Eder

Medals, 2011 Athens, photo by PhotoRun.net

The journey from Marathon to Athens honors the final miles of the messenger Phiddipidees, who told of the Greek victory at Thermopolae, and then collapsed. The Athens Classic marathon will celebrate its thirtieth anniversary. Pat Butcher’s column is on the 30th Anniversary of the Athens Classic Marathon as well as the thirtieth anniversary of the AIMS organization, that helped push the global marathon push. (Make sure that you read Pat Butcher’s columns at globalrunner.org

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RETURN TO THE SOURCE

It is an event which every distance runner in the world should either run or attend at some point – the Athens Classic Marathon, scheduled this year for November 11.

But not just runners; race organisers too.

For the latter, proceedings centre on the day before the marathon (Saturday, November 10) with the sixth annual AIMS Marathon Symposium, staged in the town of Marathon itself.

The subject of this year’s Symposium will be ‘Levels and Quality Control of a Marathon event’. Principal speakers will be the AIMS board members, Mark Milde (Berlin Marathon), Gary Boshoff (Comrades’ Marathon), and Fernando Jamarme (Santiago Marathon). More than 50 organizers of international marathon races are expected to be in Athens for the AIMS Symposium.

Since 2012 is the 30th anniversary of both the re-launch of the Athens Classic Marathon, and of the AIMS organisation itself, there will be a Gala dinner, in Athens, on Friday evening, November 10. Legendary marathon athletes and other marathon and athletics figureheads will be honoured by AIMS & the Hellenic federation, SEGAS during this special event.

The Marathon Symposium on Saturday will be preceded by the traditional lighting of the Marathon Flame, at the tomb of the soldiers who fell at the Battle of Marathon in 490BCE, the foundation event for the marathon race itself.

Race numbers were substantially increased two years ago, on the occasion of the 2500th anniversary of the Battle of Marathon. But overall entries for this year’s three major events – Marathon, 5k and 10k – will be even higher, but limited to 25,000 competitors.

Earlier this year, millionaires’ magazine Forbes named the Athens Classic Marathon as one of the must-run marathons in the world.

Accordingly, organisers urge prospective marathoners, rich and less-rich, to get their entries in soon.

See: www.athensclassicmarathon.gr

Author

Larry Eder
Larry Eder has had a 52-year involvement in the sport of athletics. Larry has experienced the sport as an athlete, coach, magazine publisher, and now, journalist and blogger. His first article, on Don Bowden, America's first sub-4 minute miler, was published in RW in 1983. Larry has published several magazines on athletics, from American Athletics to the U.S. version of Spikes magazine. He currently manages the content and marketing development of the RunningNetwork, The Shoe Addicts, and RunBlogRun. Of RunBlogRun, his daily pilgrimage with the sport, Larry says: "I have to admit, I love traveling to far away meets, writing about the sport I love, and the athletes I respect, for my readers at runblogrun.com, the most of anything I have ever done, except, maybe running itself." Also does some updates for BBC Sports at key events, which he truly enjoys. Theme song: Greg Allman, " I'm no Angel."
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