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![]() > Tourist route > Famous marathons and records > The race's legendary origins dimarts, 2 de març de 2010
Barcelona's marathon (the athletic endurance event par excellence) will take place on Sunday, 7 March.
As is standard, the course, which runs through the Catalan capital's squares and streets, is exactly 42.195 km long. The start time is 8.30 am, with the first runners expected to cross the finish line around 10.40 am. Last year's winner, the Kenyan Johnstone Chebii, had a finishing time of 2 hours, 14 minutes and 1 second. The Barcelona Marathon is increasingly consolidating its position. This year, more than 12,000 athletes will take part, 25% more than last year's figure of 9,702. Half the participants come from outside Catalonia and Spain (with the largest group of these coming from France), which is an indication of the race's growing international prestige. The marathon is preceded by other events including the Breakfast Run, a fun, 5 km race on Saturday. Also on Saturday is the Pasta Party, when dishes of pasta will be served to participants in the next day's marathon.
Tourist routeThe Barcelona Marathon route is essentially flat, with few bends. The race will begin and end on Avinguda Maria Cristina, at the foot of Montjuïc mountain. Naturally, the course takes in some of the city's key tourist spots: Camp Nou (FC Barcelona's stadium); La Pedrera (or Casa Milà) and the Sagrada Família (both designed by the Modernist architect Antoni Gaudí); Torre Agbar (designed by the French architect Jean Nouvel and inaugurated in 2005); and the Gothic cathedral. Whilst part of the course is along the sea front, it also goes along some of the city's most famous streets, including La Rambla, Passeig de Gràcia and Avinguda Diagonal.
Famous marathons and recordsThe marathon was included in the Athens Olympic Games in 1896, which were the first of the modern era. A year later, in 1897, the first Boston Marathon was held, which, along with the Berlin, Chicago, London and New York marathons, is one of the most famous in the world. The record for the men's marathon is held by the Ethiopian athlete, Haile Gebrselassie, who in 2008 ran the Berlin Marathon in 2 hours, 3 minutes and 59 seconds. The women's record of 2 hours, 15 minutes and 25 seconds was set by the English runner, Paula Radcliffe, in 2003.
The race's legendary origins![]()
+ Spyridon Louis won the first marathon at the 1896 Athens Olympics.
Legend has it that in 490 BC, at the end of the Battle of Marathon during the Greco-Persian Wars, an Athenian soldier ran from Marathon to Athens to announce the Greeks' victory over the Persians. He arrived exhausted at his destination and fell down dead right after completing his mission. In remembrance of this heroic act, the race was given the name 'marathon' and was held for the first time during the first modern Olympics between Marathon and Athens, which are some 40 km apart.
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Investiga
![](http://www.vilaweb.cat/media/imatges/diariescola/imatges/2010/03/marato/recorregut_petit.gif)
> Marató de Barcelona: mapa del recorregut.
![](http://www.vilaweb.cat/media/imatges/diariescola/imatges/2010/03/marato/alibes_petit.gif)
> El periodista Arcadi Alibés, a punt de córrer la marató número cent.
I també...
- Marató de Londres, abril del 2003: Paula Radcliffe estableix un nou rècord femení.
- Classificació de la marató de Barcelona del 2009.
- La marató barcelonina, quilòmetre a quilòmetre.
- Abebe Bikila: l'home que va guanyar la marató descalç.
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