When the Olympics returned to Athens in 2004, they also returned to antiquity.The men's and women's marathon races started in the actual town of Marathon, near the ancient battlefield about 26 miles northeast of the capital on the Aegean coast.
They finished in central Athens at the Panathenian Stadium, the marble venue used for the opening and closing ceremonies of the inaugural 1896 Games.The shot put events were even farther away, taking place in Ancient Olympia, about 120 miles southwest of Athens.
Irina Korzhanenko of Russia became the first woman to win a gold medal at the ancient site that birthed the Olympics. Yuri Bilonoh of Ukraine won the men's event.Both were soon stripped of their Olympic titles for doping, but the splendor of.