The marathon, as many know by now, stems from the Athenian victory near the town by that name over the invading Persians in 490 B.C.
西元前五世紀，波斯王大流士（Darius）東征西討，併吞了許多小國，興兵來到希臘。大多數城邦都臣服了，只有雅典及斯巴達不允，雅典據守在一個叫「馬拉松」的地方，嚴陣以待。