Question

question 8
read this passage from the article:
the first official modern marathon was held at the 1896 olympics to celebrate the story of pheidippides and his run from marathon to athens. for that first race, 17 runners competed. about half dropped out from exhaustion.
why did the author include this information?
a. to convince readers that the story where pheidippides dies of exhaustion is correct
b. to persuade readers that a modern marathon is an endurance race for the runners
c. to demonstrate the number of runners who dropped out of the first modern marathon
d. to describe how many years had passed between pheidippides’s run and the olympics

Explanation:

The passage notes half the 17 runners dropped out from exhaustion in the first modern marathon, which ties to the origin story of Pheidippides' run. This detail emphasizes the extreme physical demand of the marathon, showing it is an endurance challenge. Option A is incorrect because the passage does not confirm Pheidippides' death. Option C is a factual detail but not the author's main purpose for including it. Option D is irrelevant as no time gap is mentioned.

Answer:

B. To persuade readers that a modern marathon is an endurance race for the runners