Phidippides Award

According to chronicles, Phidippides was sent to Sparta by Athenian officials when they were threatened by Persians landing at Marathon. The trip was 150 miles which he ran in two days. The Spartans were celebrating a festival and could not come until the full moon, several days later, whereupon Phidippides retraced his steps in two more days. He then fought a battle with the rest of the Athenians routing the Persians. The Persians retreated to their ships and set sail for Athens, which caused the Athenians to send Phidippides from the battlefield to Athens, a distance of twenty-six miles. He reached Athens, pronounced Nenikekamen (‘We have won’ or ‘We are victorious’) and promptly died. Robert Browning commemorated this story in his 1879 poem Pheidippides. The poem inspired Baron Pierre de Coubertin and other founders of the modern Olympic games to invent a running race of forty-two kilometers [26.2 miles] called the marathon.

What is the Phidippides Award?

The Phidippides Award, inspired by the historic masters runner, is an award available to dedicated members of USATF forty years of age or older, who earn points through their participation in road races throughout the year. Cross Country, Ultra, and Trail Races may also be counted. Races on the track are not to be counted, Athletes who earn enough points will be recognized by USATF with a personalized Award, either a plaque or, for special years, a Crystal award.

Rules & Tables

Rules

1. All applicants must submit the Awards Application Form.
2. Applicants must be current USATF members. Click here if you are not sure if you are a member or Join Now!
3. Only one award is allowed per member per year.
4. Awards are based on accumulated points (see points table below) during a given calendar year (January 1 to December 31).
5. When submitting your Awards Application Form, you must include a link to the website where we can find the race results.
6. Only live, in-person races run in the US are eligible. We believe this promotes both physical and mental health and enriches the Running Community.
7. Applications based on races run in a given calendar year (January 1 to December 31) must be submitted by January 31st of the following year. For example, an application based on races run in 2025 is due no later than January 31, 2026.

Points Table

The point schedule includes live races at distances from 1 Mile to more than a Marathon. Runners can earn the following points toward their year-end point requirements:

The total points you accumulate during the year determine the level of award you are eligible to receive. We encourage you to submit your application as soon as you have accumulated the necessary points for your award.

Special Awards

In the 5th year and in the 10th year you qualify for an Award, you may ask for a handsome Crystal Award in place of the Gold, Silver, or Bronze Award you have earned that year. In the 15th year, you may ask for a special 15-year plaque. The years do not have to be consecutive.

Phidippides Award Application

In keeping with rule number 7 above, the deadline for submitting an application for races run in 2025 is January 31, 2026.

We encourage you to submit your application as soon as you have earned sufficient points for your age in the category (Gold, Silver, Bronze) in which you are applying. 

Application Deadlines

• Submissions between January 1–March 31 should receive their award by the first week of May.
• Submissions between April 1–June 30 should receive their award by the first week of August.
• Submissions between July 1–October 31 should receive their award by the first week of December.
• Submissions between November 1–January 31 should receive their award the first week of March.

Contact Phidippides@usatf.org if you have any questions on the program.

Award Winners

Award Winners from 2016 to the present can be found here.