A marathon is 26.2 miles long, which is roughly equivalent to 42 km. Every year, marathons take place in almost every major city in the world. People gather together, some in outrageous costumes, and attempt to complete this herculean task of running 26.2 miles for no good reason. (If you’re doing this for charity, you know you can raise money in other ways.)
Some brave souls finish, some stagger to the finish line, and some never do. It’s a big hoo-ha about one of the most ancient activities that we do as humans – run.
Have you ever wondered why a marathon is 26.2 miles and who started the tradition? I’m glad you asked.
The first marathon took place in Greece. It wasn’t a fun run at all. A soldier, Pheidippides, had to carry a message of a war victory. The battle was taking place near the town called Marathon, Greece. Pheidippides had to carry to message to the anxiously awaiting Athenians, who were located around 25 miles away. So he ran and ran, and when he arrived, he managed to yell, “victory!” before collapsing and dying of exhaustion.
Not exactly a fairytale ending. However, the modern tradition of organizing marathons suggests a deeply human connection with sports and athleticism. Humans seem to be indeed wired for sports.
In a marathon, you have the elite runners, the average everyday runners, and also a small number of runners who have not trained at all and probably shouldn’t have signed up in the first place.
What makes someone an elite sportsperson, and do genes play any role in this? Studies have attempted to solve this riddle.
It seems that there is research to suggest that certain key areas of physicality are under the influence of genes. These areas are endurance capacity – the ability to endure physical activity under continuous strain; muscle performance – the ability of muscle fibers to perform during intensive contraction; and tendon and ligamentous apparatus – the ability of your tendons and ligaments to avoid injury and heal quickly.
These key areas of physicality are huge determinants of athletic outcomes. Of course, environmental factors do come into play, such as mental resilience, quality of training, motivation, and tactical skill.
However, if genes can determine so much of physical performance, can we simply choose to selectively insert genes that favor us physically? Well, you’ve just opened a can of worms. This is the next big threat to the world of sport, termed “gene doping.” This term refers to using genetic research and genetic modification to improve one’s physical performance. It could be as simple as helping the body produce energy more efficiently, or editing genes to promote bigger and more lasting muscle growth.
Is “gene therapy” inevitable in the future of sports? Will it enhance the sporting world or ruin it? These are the questions that the sporting world needs to address – sooner or later.
Meanwhile, when you take part in your next marathon, just remember how it all started with a soldier in ancient Greece. Who knows – maybe the poor chap could have avoided his early death if gene therapy was around.