Today’s Big Story

Marathons on the Rise

Participation is up — as are finish times

Running a marathon is no joke. You’ve got to run 26.2 miles … all at once. It’s not only a physical test of your body, but a mental and emotional test as well. But it’s also a worthy challenge, which is why more and more people of all ages and backgrounds are embracing the race as a life milestone.

Long-distance running experienced a pandemic-era boom and it seems like people kept extending those regular runs until they were ready to race. Training for a marathon demands a certain amount of structure, discipline and commitment—and that can be very theraputic. “A theme that I see a lot is people are using running as a way to get through something,” New York Road Runners CEO Rob Simmelkjaer tells Axios. It could be grief over a loss or the everyday stress of raising kids.

Gen Zers are posting about marathon training on TikTok as their “quarter-life crisis.” The prospect of running the race “promises a profound sense of control that may be especially appealing to those coming into adulthood,” The Atlantic reports. Meanwhile, elder Millenials are proving to themselves that they’ve “still got it in them” to focus on their health.

Many of those who run marathons today are middle-aged or older, and some are less fit and less experienced. As a result, the average finish time in American marathons has slowed considerably, even as the top runners keep getting faster. “It went from being something for fanatics to the everyman’s Everest,” said David Monti, a marathon specialist who runs a popular newsletter on distance running, told the New York Times.

Running a marathon can offer a sense of purpose, responsibility, self-esteem and identity formation, according to Kevin Masters, a University of Colorado, Denver professor who's researched marathon participants for decades. It helps you prioritize your life, he says. And it offers community, the satisfaction of reaching a goal, along with important lessons about your body and health. But it also comes with the very real chance of injury, so don't overdo it.

White House Halts Shipment of Weapons to Israel

The United States withheld 3,500 bombs out of concern that they might be used in Rafah

President Biden paused an arms shipment to Israel last week to prevent the U.S.-made weapons from being used in a long-threatened assault on the city of Rafah, administration officials said on Tuesday night—a sign of the growing rift between America and Israel over the conduct of the war.

The State Department is reviewing whether to halt certain other future shipments to Israel, according to NBC News. No decisions have been made, and no final decision has been made on how to proceed with the shipment that was blocked.

Meanwhile, the Biden administration’s report on whether Israel has violated U.S. and international humanitarian law during the war in Gaza has been delayed and will no longer be released today as planned, three Senate aides and a House aide told POLITICO. The State Department has been working for months on the report, which will issue a determination on whether Israel has violated international humanitarian law since the war in Gaza began. If so, the U.S. would be expected to stop sending Israel military assistance.

A Boy Scout Rebranding

After 114 years, the Boy Scouts will change their name

For the first time in its history, Boy Scouts of America is changing its name to the more inclusive Scouting America. The scouting organization announced the name change on Tuesday, noting that the rebrand reflects the “ongoing commitment to welcome every youth and family in America to experience the benefits of Scouting.”

The name change will go into effect on Feb. 8, 2025—which happens to be the organization’s 115th anniversary. Of course, like with any organization (espeically one that’s over a century old), sometimes a rebrand is in order. This one comes in the wake of scandals and upheaval in the Scouts’ organization, including bankruptcy turmoil and a flood of abuse claims from former members.

It’s definitely a seismic shift for an organization steeped in tradition that did not allow gay youths (or leaders) nor girls into its ranks until relatively recently. As of this year, over 6,000 girls have now achieved the vaunted Eagle Scout rank. But, as to be expected, a wave of reaction to the change on social media included criticism that the word “boy” will no longer appear in the name of the Texas-based institution, including from Republican Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas and the National Review.

A Swiss Army Knife, Without the Blade

Victorinox will introduce a new model missing its signature feature

Speaking of Boy Scouts, when I was Scout, I always carried a classic red Swiss Army knife. It was a tool that taught us kids resourcefulness. The brand’s legendary tools have become such a shorthand for multi-functionality that companies producing does-a-lot-of-stuff wares will often say that their goods are the “Swiss Army Knife” of whatever category they’re a part of. You can use the tool to cut stuff, snip stuff, uncork stuff, file stuff—and in new versions with a USB, even download stuff.

But Victorinox, maker of the knife, is working on a new version of the classic multi-tool, which won’t actually have a blade. “We are in the early stages of developing pocket tools without blades,” a spokesperson for the company told CNN. Though it won’t be discontinuing its bladed version, the company has been trying to figure out how to serve customers in places—specifically England and some Asian countries — where knives aren’t as welcome a pocket sight than in other markets. The British government, for example, is considering new legislation on carrying blades in public.

Help Them Master Adulthood

MR PORTER has great, giftable essentials

Want to give your new grad a leg up on mastering life outside of school? Send them out into the world with a shot of confidence. The best way to do that? Equip them with some seriously stylish and well-made essentials. These are the kind of pieces that MR PORTER specializes in—crisp tailoring from the likes of TOM FORD or their easy, in-house brand, Mr P.; along with very grown-up and swanky accessories that will make going on interviews or showing up on the first day of work a whole lot easier.

Shake things up now and then.