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Paco Borao, Präsident der Association of International Marathons and Distance Races (AIMS), überreichte das historische Streckenschild des Londoner Olympia-Marathons von 1908 an die Regierende Bürgermeisterin von Berlin, Franziska Giffey, die es ihrerseits an den Präsidenten der Freunde des Berliner Sportmuseums (Marathoneum), Gerd Steins, übergab. - 2022 Berlin-Marathon Berlin, Deutschland 25. September 2022 Foto: Victah Sailer@PhotoRun www.photorun.net #victahsailer - www.photorun.NET
Historical distance sign from the original 42195m marathon Olympic course LONDON 1908, presented to the Marathoneum in the Berlin Sports Museum – Cast iron relic of the LONDON Olympic Games at the 48th BMW BERLIN MARATHON 2022
Prior to the winners crossing the finish line at the 48th BMW BERLIN MARATHON on September 25, 2022, a small but historically significant ceremony took place there.
Paco Borao, President of the Association of International Marathons and Distance Races (AIMS), handed over a route sign from the 1908 London Olympic Marathon to the Governing Mayor of Berlin, Franziska Giffey, who in turn presented it to the President of the Fördererverein des Sportmuseums Berlin (Marathoneum), Gerd Steins.
It is a rare historical relic of the race in which the marathon distance was set at 26 miles 385 yards (42195 m). The 18-mile marker, a cast-iron sign, turned up at a flea market in the north of England two years ago. Graham Webster knew what he had bought and took it to the BBC program „The Antiques Roadshow“ for inspection, but expressed the feeling in the program that the sign really belonged in a museum.
Frank Baillie (r.) AIMS board member, hands over the historic course marker to Horst Milde – Photo: Gerd Steins.
The marker was located 8.2 miles from the finish, with 18 miles to go, and bears the „5-diamond“ emblem of the Polytechnic Harriers, the club responsible for organizing the race. Such signs were used for the entire course, but the only sign known to still exist is the „25 miles“ [to go] sign at Eton.
The length of this particular race, which was given in both miles and kilometers, is significant because it was eventually established as the marathon standard of 26 miles 385 yards or 42.195 kilometers. Until then, marathons were usually about 25 miles (40 km) long, but could vary considerably in length. The reason for the importance of this race was the dramatic finale that took place on the course at White City Stadium in west London.
Italian Dorando Pietri, who had led the race for 24 miles, collapsed repeatedly and was brought to his feet by referee Jack Andrew before reaching the finish line in a final sprint. He finished 32 seconds ahead of American Johnny Hayes, but the Americans filed a protest and Hayes was awarded the victory. Public sympathy was with Pietri, and Queen Alexandra, who had witnessed his desperate struggle on the last lap, awarded him a special commemorative trophy.
The race triggered a marathon rush, and the “ re-runs “ aroused great interest among spectators. Pietri and Hayes met in many different places in the following years, both indoors and outdoors, the only constant being the distance to be covered.
In 1924, the world governing body of the sport, the International Amateur Athletics Federation (IAAF, now World Athletics), established the marathon distance as that run in the 1908 Olympic Marathon from Windsor to White City.
Source: AIMS – Distance Running
Please use the link and read the full story about the LONDON marker 1908:
https://germanroadraces.de/?post_eng=sports-history-sensation-original-kilometre-markings-from-the-london-1908-olympic-marathon-for-the-marathoneum-berlin
