Kopana-issue-04.pdf

November 2010, 4th issue

THE POLYTECHNIC

Super tribute:
The Marathon

Tidbits: cookies

The time machine

By Eleni Kotzampasi, Marilena De Pian and
Alexia De Pian

CONTENTS

• THE POLYTECHNIC.....

• The History of the Marathon

• The time machine....(Albert Einstein)

• Tidbits cookies

The Polytechnic uprising was the
most massive act of resistance by the people
against the military dictatorship and
is first and foremost the work of
students and young people. The tanks that
broke down the central gate of the
Polytechnic, had 6.5 years ago trampled
the parliamentary regime in
Greece and in July 1974 crushed
the Cypriot Democracy.

The military dictatorship
immediately abolished the parliament,
the government and the elections,
human and political rights of freedom
of the press, trade unionism, justice
and turned them into crimes.

The Marathon is an endurance race with
an official distance of 42,195 kilometers
(26 miles 385 yards). The race is named
after the run of the Greek soldier
Pheidippides from Marathon to Athens
after the Battle of Marathon (490 BC)
who ran to convey the important news
to Athens. The historical accuracy of
this myth is doubtful, and is
contradicted in particular by
accounts of the battle by Herodotus.

History
The Marathon originates from the
myth of Pheidippides, a Greek
messenger. The myth states that he
was sent from the city of Marathon
to Athens to announce that the
Persians were defeated in the Battle
of Marathon. It is said that he ran
the entire distance without stopping
and entered the Assembly of the
Parliament, where he exclaimed
"Nenikikamen" (we won) before
collapsing and dying. The story of
the run from Marathon to Athens
first appears in Plutarch's "The Glory
of Athens" of the 1st century BC,
which mentions the lost work of
Heraclides Ponticus. He gives the
name of the runner as either
Thersippos or Eukles. Lucian (2nd
century BC) also gives the story but
names the runner Philippides (not
Pheidippides). The historical
accuracy of this article is not
established. Herodotus, the main
source for the Greco-Persian Wars,
mentions Pheidippides as the
messenger who ran from Athens to
Sparta asking for help, and ran
back, a distance of over 240
kilometers. In some manuscripts the
name of the runner between Athens
and Sparta is given as Philippides.
Herodotus makes no mention of any
messenger being sent from Marathon
to Athens. He states that the main
part of the Athenian army, which had
already fought and won the
exhausting battle, feared a naval
raid by the Persian fleet against an
undefended Athens, and marched
quickly back from the battle to
Athens, arriving the same day.