Marathon, Men

The Americans dominated the athletics events, winning all but the 800 metres, 1,500 metres, and the marathon. The marathon was based on the legend of Pheidippides (although the more likely spelling was Philippides). According to Herodotus, Philippides was sent to Sparta from Athina asking for help in the battle. After the battle, a runner, whose name was Pheidippides per Lucian and Eucles per Plutarch, was sent to Marathon from Athina to tell of the victory. Further details are sketchy, though modern legend has Pheidippides/Philippides arriving in Athina to tell of the victory in the battle with the words “Rejoice, we conquer”, and then dying from his effort. The legend is now felt to be apocryphal, but it was the reason for the creation of the race from Marathon to Athina, a distance of about 25 miles.

In the marathon, there were several early leaders, notably Teddy Flack of Australia, who had won the 800 and 1,500 metres. Midway through the race, Spyros Louis, a Greek shepherd, took the lead and maintained it to the end. When he neared the stadium, messengers came into the ancient vestibule and cried out “Hellene! Hellene! (A Greek! A Greek!)”, sending the crowd into a frenzy. The Olympic pride, based on millennia of tradition, was then realized by the home crowd, which heretofore had been rather disappointed by the results of the Greek athletes. Louis won the race and became a hero, offered gifts and riches by many different Greek merchants. But he asked only for a cart to help him carry his water and he returned to being a shepherd in his small town of Marousi.