Marathon Facts

Watching every episode of The Simpsons back-to-back would take about 12 days of non-stop viewing—over 293 hours across 801 episodes.

Sir Ranulph Fiennes had a heart attack and a double bypass. Four months later, at 59, he ran seven marathons in seven days on seven continents, finishing the lot in roughly 26 hours of running. He has also sawed off his own frostbitten fingers with a fretsaw in his garden shed, discovered the lost city of Ubar, and summited Everest at 65. Guinness calls him the greatest living explorer.

At the 1912 Olympics, a marathon runner quit and went home to Japan without telling officials and was considered a missing person in Sweden for 50 years. In 1966, he was invited to complete the marathon. His time: 54 years, 8 months, 6 days, 5 hours, 32 minutes and 20.379 seconds.

Ajay Haridasse collapsed 1,000 feet from the Boston Marathon finish line with severe cramps. Two strangers - Aaron Beggs of Northern Ireland and Robson De Oliveira of Brazil - stopped their own races, slid under his arms, and walked him across. The man they carried finished in 2:44:32. Beggs crossed 4 seconds later.

When the 2012 New York City Marathon was cancelled, more than 1,000 runners took the ferry to Staten Island with backpacks of blankets, batteries and food. Superstorm Sandy had wrecked the island, where the race starts, and the mayor called it off two days before. Sports doctor Jordan Metzl rallied them on Facebook, and his group ran 15 miles, then helped clear out a family's home.