It actually took centuries for the story of a runner who ran back to Athens to bring the joyous news of the victory against the Persians to surface. Plutarch mentions a certain Eucles who ran in full armour and expired upon delivering the news. The satirist Lucian credits someone called Philipides. Herodotus, who lived shortly after the events, narrates no such incident but he does mention the feat of Pheidippides, a day-runner who run from Athens to Sparta and back (500 km / 310 mi) in two days to ask for help against the Persians. Along the way, he encountered the god Pan, who expressed his anguish at the Athenians’ lack of respect, even though he would come to their aid.