The First Marathon: Athens, Part 1.
Exploring the Athens Authentic Marathon course, November 10, 2018.
*Still oblivious to the fact that a half of the race goes uphill.
I arrived in Athens, one of the world’s oldest cities, late on November 9, 2018, which meant that the next day, the day before the race on Sunday, November 11, would be dedicated to heading to the Athens Authentic Marathon expo to pick up a race bib and have plenty of rest and loads of food. It didn’t exactly go that way.
I started my pre-marathon day with a glass of water and breakfast, which I made the evening before - chia pudding and overnight oats. Food is something that I think about a lot, particularly before and during the races, as my stomach quite quickly will tell if it doesn’t like something. While enjoying my breakfast I explored a map of Athens to find the best way to get to the marathon expo, which took place across the city in Faliro Coastal Zone Olympic Sports Complex; at the 2004 Summer Olympics it hosted handball, taekwondo and volleyball events. Olympic games always gets me utterly excited!
On my way to the bus stop I enjoyed the scent of blossoms and herbs in the air, to me it all smelled like sundried tomatoes bursting with flavour in the last summer sunshine. This warmth was a welcome change after spending the past two months training on the winter-y and stormy shores of the West Coast of Ireland.
Through the bus window I quickly observed the mythological side of Athens - Acropolis appeared on one side and the temple of Olympian Zeus peeked through trees on the other side. The streets of Athens are seeped in history and mythology, as well as reminders that this is the birthplace of Western Civilisation, it was tangible in the air.
Around 40 min later I arrived at the expo, streets were filled with runners. I quickly fell in love with the marathon atmosphere, and respect and support to anyone who was planning to run the race. The expo itself was huge! I got my bib, and headed in to explore - got a pair of running socks for future runs (never ever wear anything new on a race day, stick to what you have), recovery sandals (wasn’t sure what my feet will look like after the marathon, so planning ahead), plenty of Cliff Bars, and dried fruits (dates filled with pistachios (best snack!) and loads of figs).
Just before leaving the expo I watched the marathon course video and then it started to sink in - tomorrow I will be running my first marathon - first for me and first for the history books - I have never run so far. Tomorrow! Excitement and fear showed up at the same time. I didn’t explore the race course beforehand, so only there in the expo, the day before, I learnt that the marathon course from the 10 km mark all the way to the 31 km is uphill, and apparently it is the toughest uphill climb of any major marathon (that I learnt only now!). And then a slight downhill towards the city of Athens. I was glad that the excitement about being in Athens and running the next day clouded my mind, and I only did the math during the race, when I was really starting to get tired of that hill - half of the race course goes uphill, HALF.
Before I left expo I had a look at the harbour and enjoyed my first glance at Aegean Sea; the marathon course brings you from one coast of Aegean Sea to the other, from the town of Marathon to Athens.
As I struggled to find the right bus stop, I decided to walk for a bit and see if I can catch the bus in the next stop, or the one after that or after that, well in the end I walked quite a bit. Once I got on the bus couple of stops later I decided to get out as The Panathenaic Stadium appeared in front of my eyes - the finish line. The whole stadium is built entirely of marble, originally a racecourse which held athletic festival celebrated every 4 years in honour of the goddess Athena, daughter of Zeus and creator of the first olive tree (Greek olives is something truly special). The Panathenaic Stadium hosted the first modern Olympics in 1896; and still to this day before every Olympic games Olympic torch travels from The Panathenaic Stadium to the new host city. Taking from the tradition of the Olympic Torch, the marathon race features the Marathon Flame, which is lit at the Tomb of the Battle of Marathon and carried to the stadium in Marathon before the beginning of each race. As I said, everything here is seeped in history and tradition, and Olympics!
As my AirBnB was only 20 min walk away from The Panathenaic Stadium I decided to walk back. Once you arrive in Athens you pretty quickly learn that everything is uphill or downhill, and the higher you get the more beautiful the view over the city, particularly during the sunset. As I maneuvered through the narrow streets, every now and again I peeked down to see the sun set, I found fruit and veg vendors, and managed to get everything for the last pre-race supper - pasta loaded with veggies. I got back just as the sky started to turn dark blue and purple, shortly after 6.00 p.m. Which means my day of rest, turned into a full day of walking (my watch showed ~24 000 steps) and I won’t lie I enjoyed every bit of it.
Now it was time to eat, check that I have everything for the next morning (sunscreen!), set alarm for 4.00 a.m., and put my legs up the wall before falling asleep.
Good night!