The marathon is a foot race with an official distance of 42.195km and in the case of Ireland is run on roads. The race has its origins with Pheidippides who was a Greek soldier who carried a message from the Battle of Marathon to Athens. The marathon has been an olympic even since the first modern games in 1896 although the distance didn't become standardised until 1921.
Training for a marathon is undertaken over months and is generally very structured with long slow runs being a key feature. Most programs last 6 months and contain gradual increases up to and beyond full marathon distance.
