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While the death of a runner during a marathon attracts widespread media attention, in reality fatalities fall in a community hosting a mass-participation distance race, according to provocative new Canadian research.

That is because the road closings associated with a major marathon result in fewer motor-vehicle fatalities, which more than offset the rare running-related death.

"There are fewer tombstones the day after a marathon," Donald Redelmeier, a professor of medicine at the University of Toronto, said in an interview.

"From a societal perspective, we're better off having people running than driving."

The research, published in today's edition of the British Medical Journal, found that over a 30-year period, there were 26 marathon deaths.

But because of road closings during the races, an estimated 46 motor-vehicle fatalities were prevented, the researchers found.

The study determined that there were 0.8 deaths for every 100,000 marathon runners, much lower than previous estimates.

The typical victim was a middle-aged male (average age 41) and almost all were found to be suffering from atherosclerosis, or hardening of the arteries.

The study did not find that experience or speed of the runners had any influence. The deaths occurred in first-timers as well as veterans of multiple marathons, and in elite runners as well as plodding weekend warriors.

Dr. Redelmeier said he hopes the research will help set the record straight on the safety of marathon running, particularly after a couple of highly publicized deaths during Toronto marathons in recent years.

"This excessive coverage has had a chilling effect on public opinion of exercise," the researcher said. "The fear of death should not be an excuse to not exercise because the risk is very, very low."

One of the most fascinating findings in the research is that the majority of the marathon deaths that occurred were in the last mile of the race.

"Relatively speaking, that final sprint is much more dangerous," Dr. Redelmeier said.

Practically speaking, he said, race organizers should use that information to place ambulances near the finish line and to be particularly vigilant about runners who seem to be suffering.

One of the most highly publicized deaths occurred in September, 2006, when 41-year-old Martin Poyser collapsed and died during the Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon. He was 800 metres from the finish line.

In October, 2005, a 36-year-old Oakville, Ont., man died while running a half-marathon in Toronto. He collapsed just after crossing the finish line. And in October, 2004, there was a virtually identical incident in which a 42-year-old man died near the finish line of the Toronto Marathon.

The new research did not include data from the two Toronto marathons. But of the 26 marathons examined, 15 had no deaths, six had one death and five had more than one death.

To conduct the research, Dr. Redelmeier and his colleague Ari Greenwald randomly selected 26 established marathons that took place on U.S. roadways between 1975 and 2004.

Almost 3.3 million runners took part in those select races in cities such as New York, Chicago and Honolulu, with each running 26.2 miles (or 42.2 kilometres).

Sudden cardiac deaths following each marathon were recorded and compared with motor-vehicle deaths during the same hours one week before and one week after each marathon.

A total of 85 motor-vehicle deaths occurred in the surrounding cities and counties on marathon days that were examined. But on non-marathon days that were used for comparative purposes, there were 131 deaths.

That works out to 46 fewer deaths, or a 35-per-cent risk reduction.

Put another way, the data show that there are about two deaths that occur for every million hours of aerobic exercise.

By contrast, there are about 20 motor-vehicle deaths for

every million hours of driving.

Dr. Redelmeier noted that, in general, the public tends to overestimate the risk of unusual forms of death and underestimate the risk of common forms of death, and the media play a large role in this phenomenon.

For example, there are about 100 deaths a day in motor-vehicle crashes in the United States (and about 10 daily in Canada) and they garner virtually no media coverage.

There are only a couple of deaths annually that occur in marathons, and they get widespread coverage.