An epic tale of romance, history and sports which begins among the ancient burial grounds of Egypt and climaxes at the Olympic Games in Athens in 1896. Yusuf, a young uneducated man and outstanding distance runner is forced by circumstance to run in the Marathon in the first of the new Olympics in order to win the hand of the girl he wants to marry. He must overcome the animosity and enmity of her guardian and uncle. His running companion is a small camel called Suzy. The story is set against the rising nationalism of Egypt and the secret war plans of Germany.