Ka cika wannan magana: An fara gudanar da tseren marathon a shekara ta 1896, amma Ƙungiyar 'Yan Wasan Ƙasa ta Duniya (IAAF) ba ta daidaita nisan ba sai a shekara ta 1921. Matsakaicin ainihin tseren tseren pre-1921 sau da yawa ya bambanta kaɗan daga adadi na yanzu na 42.195 km (26 mil 385 yadi). A cikin tseren cancanta don wasannin Olympics na lokacin rani na 1896, 'yan tseren Girka Charilaos Vasilakos (3:18:00) da Ioannis Lavrentis (3:11:27) sun lashe farkon tseren marathon na zamani. A ranar 10 ga Afrilu, 1896, Spiridon Louis na Girka ya ci nasara
na farko Olympic marathon a Athens, Girka a cikin lokaci na 2:58:50; duk da haka, an bayar da rahoton nesa don taron ya zama mita 40,000 kawai. Watanni uku bayan haka, dan tseren Burtaniya Len Hurst ya lashe gasar farko ta Paris zuwa Conflans Marathon (kuma kusan kilomita 40) a cikin lokaci na 2: 31:30. A shekara ta 1900, Hurst zai inganta lokacinsa a kan wannan hanya tare da wasan kwaikwayon 2: 26: 28. Daga baya, Shizo Kanakuri na Japan an ba da rahoton cewa ya kafa tarihin duniya na 2: 32:45 a cikin watan Nuwamba na shekarar 1911 a cikin tseren cancanta na gida don wasannin Olympics na 1912, amma wannan aikin ya kasance a kan nisan kusan kilomita 40. Marathon na farko a kan nisa na yanzu na yau da kullum ya lashe Johnny Hayes na Amurka a gasar Olympics ta 1908, tare da lokaci na 2: 55: 18.4.