A Question for the Blogosphere...

Why are running distances marked out in meters? Or kilometers? We have a 1600 meter track, not a quarter mile track. We run the 100 meter dash, the 200 meter dash, the 300 meter hurdles, the 400 meter dash, the 800 meter run, the 1600 meter run, the 3200 meter run, 5k's, 10k's... What's the deal?! is it because it sounds like we are running more than if we measured in feet, yards or miles? After all I feel a lot better after a 5k run than after a 3.2 mile run! The psychology of running... something I never thought I would be thinking about...